George  Washington  Flowers 
Memorial  Collection 


DUKE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 


ESTABLISHED  BY  THE 
FAMILY  OF 
COLONEL  FLOWERS 


-A- 

BRIEF  HISTORY 


OF 


ST.  JOHN'S 

HBvancjeltcal  Xutberan  Cburcb, 


n  0F  'ipi 

Cabarrus  County,  N.  C, 

>/  FROM 

S 

ITS  EARLIEST  SETTLEMENT  TO  THE  PRESENT  TIME. 

^  BY 

SIDNEY  D.  STEFFEY, 

Pastor  of  St.  John's  Church. 

"Hi/hctio  halh  the  Lord  helped  us  " — /.  Samuel,  7.12. 


{Hill 

CONCORD,  N.  C: 
THE  TIMES  STEAM  BOOK  AND  JOB  PRESSES. 
1899. 


i  w 

a 


BRIEF  HISTORY 

OF 

ST.  JOHN'S 

Evangelical  Xutberan  Gburcb, 

OF 

Cabarrus  County,  N.  c, 

from 

ITS  EARLIEST  SETTLEMENT  Til  THE  PRESENT  _  TIME. 

RY 

SIDNEY  D.  STEFFEY, 

Pastor  of  St.  John's  Church. 

- — psfc^ttSX^M — 
"Hitherto  hath  the  Lord  helped  us." — /  Samuel,  J  :I2. 


CONCORD,  N.  C: 

THE  TIMES  STEAM  BOOK  AND  JOB  PRESSES. 

1899. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2014 


https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofst02stef 


To 

The  Memory  of 
The  Members  of  St.  John's  Church., 
and  to 

'/'hose  Who  Are  Still  Living, 

These  Pages 
Are  Respectfu/lv  Dedicated 
by 

the 

A  uthor. 


This  certifies  that  we  have  this  day  examined  the  MSS. 
of  a  Brief  History  of  St.  John's  E.  L.  Church,  written  by 
our  Pastor,  Rev.  Sidney  J).  Steffey,  and  we  desire  to  express 
our  hearty  appreciation  and  approval  of  the  same.  We 
hereby  recommend  it  to  the  members  of  our  church,  and  to 
the  people  in  general,  and  we  hereby  authorize  the  publica- 
tion of  the  same. 

C.  I).  Barringer, 
Geo.  E.  Ritchie, 
(J.  M.  Goodman, 

Elders. 

John  W.  Cress, 
W.  B.  Fisher, 
M.  L.  Clixk, 
John  I).  Walker, 

Deacons. 

March  13th,  1899. 


preface. 


The  author  of  this  little  book  began  the  study  of  tlie  his- 
tory of  St.  John's  Church  for  the  purpose  of  knowing  better 
his  own  people. 

It  proved  so  interesting  to  him  that  it  was  thought  it 
might  be  of  interest  to  others,  and  so  it  was  decided  to  pub- 
lish a  short  history  of  the  congregation  from  its  establish- 
ment to  the  present.  It  is  made  up  chiefly  from  the  Records 
of  the  church,  but  the  author  has  drawn  some  from  other 
sources — notably  from  Bernheim's  "  History  of  the  German 
Settlements,  and  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  North  and 
South  Carolina,"  and  due  acknowledgement  is  made  of  the 
same. 

Is  this  a  true  Record  ? 

I  answer  that  it  is  so,  so  far  as  it  is  possible  to  make  it  so. 
Nothing  has  been  written  which  could  not  be  verified  either 
by  the  Records,  or  from  some  other  source. 

This  book  is  just  what  it  is  said  to  be,  a  short,  plain  his- 
tory of  St.  John's  Church. 

The  author  is  aware  of  the  fact  that  it  is  imperfect  in 
many  ways,  but  it  is  sent  out  in  the  hope  that  it  may  be  of 
interest  to,  at  least,  the  members  of  the  Church,  and  if  it 
should  afford  the  reader  any  considerable  part  of  the  pleasure 
that  its  production  has  afforded  the  author  he  will  feel  am- 
ply repaid,  for  this  work  has  really  been  "  a  labor  of  love." 

SIDNEY  I).  STEFFEY. 

St.  John's  Parsonage,  March  13th,  1899. 


CHAPTER  I. 


EARLY  HISTORY. 

T.  JOHN'S  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  of  Cabarrus 
County,  Xorth  Carolina,  is  situated  in  the  eastern  part 
of  the  county.  It  is  a  very  old  congregation,  and  very  pros- 
perous, being  situated  in  one  of  the  most  productive  sections 
of  the  State. 

This  part  of  the  country  was  settled  about  the  year  1T50. 
by  Germans  from  Pennsylvania.  As  soon  as  enough  people 
were  located  in  one  community  they  would  establish  a  church 
and  a  school  for  the  children.  Thus  these  settlers  built 
their  church  and  school  house  on  Buffalo  Creek. 

They  had  only  begun  to  feel  that  they  were  about  to  suc- 
ceed when  they  were  rudely  disturbed  by  the  Revolutionary 
War.  They  were  very  determined  in  their  resistance  to 
British  misrule  and  tyranny,  and  were  both  feared  and  hated 
by  the  British  and  Tories. 

Governor  Tryon  made  a  strong  effort  to  have  them  return 
to  their  allegiance  to  the  existing  government,  and  for  this 
purpose  he  made  a  personal  visit  to  this  "hot-bed"  of  resist- 
ance, and  while  here  he  enjoyed  the  hospitality  of  Caj)t.  John 
Paul  Barringer,  who  was  the  recognized  leader  among  the 
patriots  of  Mecklenburg  County.  He  seemed  to  be  satisfied 
that  he  had  sounded  the  death  bell  at  the  funeral  of  liberty 
and  independence  in  these  parts.    This  was  in  1768. 

He  went  away  supposing  these  Germans  were  his  firm 
friends,  but  he  was  greatly  deceived  in  this,  as  he  had  mis- 
taken hospitality  for  submission. 

The  war  cost  them  dearly,  both  in  blood  and  treasure. 


10 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


They  were  hunted  like  beasts,  and  murdered  and  robbed  by 
the  Tories  at  home,  and  they  lost  many  men  in  battle.  One 
family  alone  lost  seven  sons,  all  slain  in  battle.  This  family 
was  named  Black  welder,  and  no  doubt  many  of  the  families 
of  the  church  wept  for  their  dead,  who  lost  their  lives  in 
battle  or  from  disease  and  exposure. 

Previous  to  the  year  1792  Cabarrus  County  was  included 
in  Mecklenburg  County.  The  western  portion  of  it  was 
settled  by  Irish  Presbyterians,  while  the  eastern  part  was 
settled  entirely  by  Germans  from  Pennsylvania. 

Quite  a  number  of  Hessian  soldiers  deserted  from  the 
British  army,  after  the  siege  of  Savannah,  and  found  their 
way  to  Dutch  Buffalo  Creek,  and  remained  there  perma- 
nently. These  partly  supplied  the  loss  of  the  very  many  young 
men  who  had  sacrificed  their  lives  during  the  Revolution- 
ary War.  While  no  regular  army  passed  through  their  im- 
mediate settlement,  yet  they  were  harrassed  by  the  Tories. 
Many  settlers  were  robbed  and  some  were  killed,  and  others 
taken  to  prison.  Prominent  among  the  latter  was  John 
Paul  Barringer,  who,  being  too  old  for  the  regular  service, 
was  surprised  and  captured  in  his  bed  and  taken  to  Camden 
and  held  as  a  prisoner  until  the  close  of  the  war. 

The  British  and  Tories  hated  them  with  a  special  hatred, 
and  not  without  a  reason,  as  they  were  residents  of  Meck- 
lenburg county,  whose  citizens  were  the  first  to  declare  their 
independence  May  20th,  1775. 

St.  John's  congregation  was  at  first  known  as  "  Dutch 
Buffalo  Creek  Church,"  because  most  of  its  members  were 
located  along  that  stream,  and  also  because  their  first  place 
of  worship  was  located  near  the  same  creek,  about  three 
miles  east  of  its  present  location.  The  first  house  of  wor- 
ship was  a  very  plain  one,  made  of  unhewn  pine  logs.  It 
was  also  used  as  a  school  house.  It  was  jointly  owned  by 
the  Lutherans  and  German  Reforms.  They  laid  off  a  suita- 
ble piece  of  ground  for  a  graveyard,  where  repose  all  that  is 
mortal  of  many  of  the  early  settlers  of  eastern  Cabarrus. 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


11 


As  the  congregations  increased  it  was  decided  to  build  a 
house  of  worship  which  would  accommodate  both  denomi- 
nations. This  second  was  no  better  than  the  first  house, 
except  it  was  larger.  It  was  situated  about  one-half  mile 
east  of  the  present  building  on  land  now  owned  by  Mr. 
Martin  L.  Cline.  It  seems  that  this  house,  or  perhaps  the 
location,  did  not  give  satisfaction,  as  it  was  soon  abandoned. 

The  growth  of  the  congregation  was  very  slow.  Although 
the  German  settlements  in  the  interior  of  North  Carolina 
began  in  1750  they  grew  very  slowly,  owing  to  the  manner 
in  which  they  were  made.  They  had  to  come  on  the  over- 
land route  in  wagons  or  on  foot,  from  the  Province  of  Penn- 
sylvania. It  took  many  years  for  them  to  get  enough  peo- 
ple together  to  form  a  congregation,  and  even  after  these 
were  formed  they  sorely  felt  the  need  of  a  pastor.  They 
would  meet  on  the  Lord's  day  and  the  school  teacher  would 
read  a  sermon,  and  he  would  often  officiate  at  a  funeral,  and 
often,  in  extreme  cases,  baptize  their  children.  Occasion- 
ally a  traveling  minister  came  among  them  and  preached  for 
them  and  administered  the  sacraments,  etc. 

Things  went  on  this  way  until  about  the  year  1771  with 
St.  John's.  With  this  year  began  the  real  life  of  the  con- 
gregation. Captain  John  Paul  Barringer  and  others  sug- 
gested that  the  Lutherans  separate  from  the  German  Re- 
forms, and  that  they  build  their  own  church.  This  was 
accordingly  done,  and  a  site  was  selected  in  the  present  grave- 
yard. Daniel  Jarrett  was  the  contractor  and  Captain  Bar- 
ringer was  the  only  member  of  the  building  committee. 
The  church  was  built  chiefly  at  his  own  expense,  and  the 
congregation  had  a  large  pew  constructed  for  the  special 
benefit  of  himself  and  family. 

With  their  church  completed,  and  located  satisfactorily  to 
all,  it  was  but  natural  that  they  should  endeavor  to  secure 
a  pastor  to  preach  the  Word  to  them,  instruct  their  children 
and  administer  the  sacraments  to  them  regularly.  But  this 
was  no  easy  task.    There  were  none  to  be  had  in  the  Caro- 


12 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


liuas,  and  none  could  be  spared  from  Pennsylvania.  It  only 
remained  for  them  to  send  to  Germany.  This  they  agreed 
to  do.  Acccordingly,  in  1772,  Christopher  Layrle,  from  St. 
John's  Church,  and  Christopher  Rintelmann,  from  Organ 
Church,  were  sent  as  a  delegation  to  Europe  for  the  purpose 
of  applying  to  the  Consistory  Council  of  Hanover,  in  Ger- 
many, for  a  supply  of  ministers  of  the  gospel  and  school 
teachers  for  the  North  Carolina  congregations. 

They  first  went  to  London  and  then  to  Hanover,  and  there 
obtained  the  Rev.  Adolph  Xussmann  as  their  pastor,  and 
Gottfried  Arndt  as  school  teacher.  They  arrived  safely  in 
North  Carolina  in  1773. 

These  commissioners  also  secured  some  donations  in 
money,  which  was  interrupted  by  the  Revolutionary  War. 
but  which  were  eventually  paid  after  a  period  of  more  than 
ten  years. 


CHAPTER  II. 


FROM  1774  TO  1794. 

♦fTN  the  year  1774  the  Rev.  Adolph  Nussmann,  who  since 
"  his  arrival  in  Xorth  Carolina,  had  been  laboring  a  little 
more  than  a  year  at  Organ  Church  and  in  Salisbury,  came 
to  St.  John's  as  their  first  regular  pastor.  He  located  him- 
self near  the  church  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  Mr.  H.  C. 
McAllister. 

Pastor  Nussmann  entered  this  land  in  his  own  name  in  the 
year  1783.  The  original  grant  is  now  in  the  possession  of 
the  present  owner.  The  land  lies  one  mile  southeast  of  the 
church.  The  first  house  stood  about  200  yards  in  the  rear 
of  the  present  house,  just  over  the  brow  of  the  hill. 

Here  many  meetings  of  the  Council  were  held  looking  to 
the  advancement  of  the  interests  of  the  congregation,  and 
here,  in  this  humble  home,  many  plans  were  devised, 
in  the  fertile  brain  of  the  devoted  minister,  for  the  estab- 
lishment and  the  perpetuation  of  the  Redeemer's  King- 
dom in  the  wilderness  of  Xorth  Carolina. 

Mr.  McAllister  also  owns  the  first  stove  used  in  St.  John's 
church,  and  has  it  safely  stored  away  on  this  farm.  It  is  a 
quaint  affair,  and  is  in  a  very  good  state  of  preservation, 
considering  its  great  age  and  the  amount  of  service  rendered. 

Pastor  Nussmann  spent  the  remaining  years  of  his  useful 
life  on  this  farm,  and  eternity  alone  will  reveal  all  of  the 
results  of  the  twenty  years  of  labor  and  sacrifice  for  this 
people,  and  for  the  Church  at  large. 

About  this  time  the  congregation  built  a  schoolhouse,  just 
immediately  west  of  the  church,  and  secured  a  Mr.  Fries- 
land  as  their  teacher. 


u 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


The  house  contained  two  rooms,  and  had  a  large  chimney 
in  the  middle,  built  of  stones,  some  of  which  may  be  seen 
now.  One  room  was  used  as  a  school  room,  while  the  other 
was  occupied,  as  a  dwelling,  by  the  teacher  and  his  family. 

It  is  a  fact,  worthy  of  note,  that  from  the  time  the  first 
house  of  worship  was  built  on  Buffalo  Creek  to  the  present, 
St.  John's  has  always  had  her  schoolhouse  by  the  church. 

Messrs.  Jacob  Fegert,  Marx  liaus  and  Jacob  Thieme  paid 
fifty  shillings,  that  being  the  legal  rate,  for  one  hundred 
acres  of  government  land,  and  entered  it  "in  trust  for  the 
congregation  of  Dutch  Buffalo  Meeting-House." 

This  tract  embraced  the  land  on  which  the  church  had 
already  been  built,  and  on  which  the  parsonage  now  stands. 
It  was  a  wise  foresight  on  the  part  of  these  devoted  men. 
The  land  is  very  valuable  now,  and  a  source  of  considerable 
income  to  the  congregation. 

The  grant  was  made  on  the  22nd  of  October,  1782. 

About  this  time  the  congregation  adopted  a  constitution 
for  its  government.  It  is  very  strict,  both  in  doctrine  and 
discipline.    The  following  facts  are  gathered  : 

1.  The  pastor  was  bound  to  confess,  with  heart  and  mouth, 
to  the  symbolical  books  of  the  church. 

2.  A  regular  support,  for  pastor  and  schoolteacher,  was 
expected  from  the  members. 

3.  All  marriages  had  to  be  proclaimed  three  Sundays,  in 
succession,  before  the  marriage  could  take  place,  and  no  one 
but  a  minister  was  allowed  to  perform  the  ceremony. 

4.  The  church  council  was  designated  as  adjunct  execu- 
tors in  all  wills  and  testaments. 

The  following  was  the  order  of  service  in  the  church: 

1.  A  hymn  of  praise. 

2.  A  collect,  or  the  epistle  for  the  day. 

3.  The  principal  hymn. 

4.  Reading  of  the  Scriptures. 

5.  The  creed,  or  a  short  Sunday  hymn. 

6.  The  sermon. 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


15 


7.  The  singing  of  a  few  verses. 

8.  A  short  catechetical  exercise. 

9.  A  long  prayer,  suitable  either  to  the  catechetical  lecture, 
sermon  or  other  circumstances. 

10.  The  benediction. 

Hi  The  concluding  verse  of  the  principal  hymn. 

12.  The  liturgy  adopted  was  the  one  used  in  the  German 
Lutheran  Court  Chapel  of  St.  James,  in  London,  and  the 
Marburg  Hymn-book  was  introduced  in  the  worship  of  the 
congregation. 

Pastor  Nussmann's  work  at  St.  John's  was  much  disturbed 
by  the  Revolutionary  War.  Pastor  and  people  were  loyal  to 
the  American  cause,  be  it  said  to  their  honor,  and  in  conse- 
quence they  suffered  many  hardships  and  losses. 

Their  strong  men  fell  in  battle,  or  rotted  in  British  pris- 
ons. They  were  sorely  beset  by  the  Tories,  so  much  so  that 
at  one  time  Pastor  Nussmann  had  to  conceal  himself  in  the 
thickets  along  Adams  Creek  from  them. 

But  with  the  close  of  the  war  peace  and  prosperity  came 
to  the  church.  All  of  the  Lutheranism  of  the  county  was 
centered  in  St.  John's.  The  pastor's  influence  was  extended, 
even  to  other  counties.  In  those  early  times  it  was  the  cus- 
tom to  have  but  one  church  centrally  located  in  a  county, 
and  the  people  would  come  miles  and  connect  themselves 
with  the  church,  and  attend  divine  service.  This  made  the 
pastoral  work  very  difficult,  but  the  pastor  was  more  than 
equal  to  the  task,  for  he  even  made  missionary  tours  to  Da- 
vidson, Guilford,  Orange,  Stokes  and  Forsythe  counties. 
Thus  did  God  bless  and  prosper  the  church  until  the  death 
of  the  pastor. 

After  the  close  of  the  war  the  want  of  a  better  house  of 
worship  was  felt,  when  the  congregation  had  again  been 
thoroughly  reorganized.  On  the  6th  of  November,  1784,  a 
resolution  was  passed  "for  the  purpose  of  rebuilding  St. 
John's  Church."  It  was  erected  on  the  same  site  where  the 
old  one  stood.    The  following  is  the  preface  to  thesubscrip- 


16 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


tion:  "  May  the  good  Lord  help  us,  so  that  our  undertaking 
may  succeed  well  in  peace  and  unanimity,  and  that  every 
man  may  do  his  part  as  he  would  wish  others  to  do  towards 
himself."  The  subscription  ranged  from  three  shillings  to 
ten  pounds,  and  the  whole  amount  gathered  was  172^ 
pounds. 

The  church  was  finished  the  next  year,  and  was  solemnly 
dedicated  to  the  service  of  the  triune  God,  on  the  4th  of 
July,  1785.  At  the  same  time  a  large  silver  goblet  was  pur- 
chased from  the  pastor  for  the  use  of  their  communion 
service. 

The  church  was  much  larger  than  any  that  had  been  built 
up  to  this  time,  and  was  a  frame  structure. 

This  house  was  commonly  known  as  the  "Old  Red  Meet- 
ing-House,"  being  painted  red.  It  was  replaced  by  the 
brick  building,  the  walls  of  which  are  now  standing,  in  1846. 

General  Barringer  s  elevated  pew  was  transferred  to  this 
house,  from  the  old  one,  and  many  who  are  now  living  re- 
member it  well. 

An  effort  was  now  made  to  have  the  church  placed,  once 
more,  in  connection  with  the  Church  in  Germany,  by  Rev. 
Nussmann,  and  he  succeeded.  The  congregation  had  money, 
90  pounds,  on  deposit  in  London,  which  had  been  procured 
by  the  commissioners  who  had  gone  over  to  Germany  for 
the  purpose  of  securing  pastors  and  teachers  for  the  North 
Carolina  churches,  the  payment  of  which  had  been  delayed 
by  the  Revolutionary  War,  and  which  was  well  worth  look- 
ing after. 

And  besides  this,  the  need  of  books  was  greatly  felt  by  the 
church,  and  these,  in  the  German  language,  could  only  be 
secured  in  Europe. 

For  the  consideration  of  these  matters  a  meeting  of  the 
Council  was  held  on  the  30th  of  September,  1787,  and  the 
following  action  taken: 

"Resolved,  That  if  this  money  can  be  secured,  it  shall 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


11 


forever  be  considered  as  a  fund  belonging  solely  to  the 
church. 

"Resolved,  That  from  the  interest  of  this  fund  the  yearly 
salary  of  the  pastor  shall  be  supplemented. 

"That  no  part  of  the  principal  shall  be  used  without  the 
consent  of  the  donors." 

Contrary  to  this  resolution,  this  fund  was  all  used  when 
the  new  church  was  built  in  1846.  It  then  amounted  to 
about  fifteen  hundred  dollars. 

"Resolved,  That  this  amount  of  funds  shall  not  be  sent 
in  money,  but  as  the  congregation  is  desirous  of  obtaining 
books,  it  is  requested  that  books,  strongly  but  not  expen- 
sively bound,  be  sent  over  to  us. 

"Resolved,  That  the  chest,  in  which  these  books  are  to 
sent  shall  be  directed  M.  C.  D.  B.  C." 

There  is  a  great  deal  of  uncertainty  as  to  what  these  let- 
ters signify,  but  they  probably  mean  Mecklenburg  County, 
Dutch  Buffalo  Creek. 

It  will  be  seen  that  it  was  the  intention  to  sell  the  books 
to  the  members,  and  thus  to  supply  two  wants  at  once.  In 
both  they  were  successful. 

After  this  the  work  went  on  with  much  success,  until  the 
death  of  Pastor  Nussmann,  which  sad  event  occurred  at  his 
home  near  the  church,  on  the  3rd  day  of  November,  1794. 

Soon  after  he  came  to  this  country  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Barbara,  a  daughter  of  Christopher  Layrle,  one 
of  the  commissioners  sent  to  Germany  to  bring  over  pastors 
and  teachers.  He  was  the  father  of  several  children,  and 
his  descendants  are  still  living  in  this  county. 

His  death  was  not  unexpected,  as  he  had  been  suffering 
for  quite  a  while  from  a  cancer  on  his  neck. 

He  was  buried  at  St.  John's.  A  blue  stone  marked  his 
grave  for  many  years,  but  as  it  was  nearly  destroyed  by  the 
ravages  of  time,  it  now  safely  reposes  inside  the  church,  and 
a  new  marble  slab,  the  gift  of  the  members  of  the  church, 
has  taken  its  place  at  the  grave.    The  inscription  on  the 


18 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


old  stone  is  in  German.  The  following  is  the  translation  : 
"  For  me  to  live  is  Christ,  to  die  is  to  gain.  The  memory 
of  the  righteous  is  blessed.  Here  repose  the  remains  of  the 
faithful  preacher,  Adolphns  Nussmann,  born  in  Germany 
August,  1737,  died  November  3rd,  1794." 

He  was  aged  about  55  years.  He  was  a  very  scholarly 
man  and  could  have  graced  any  position  in  life,  but  he  chose 
to  give  himself  to  the  establishment  of  the  Lutheran  church 
in  North  Carolina,  and  it  certainly  seems  that  he  and 
Arndt  were  raised  up  of  God  for  this  special  work. 


CHAPTER  III. 


FROM  1794  TO  1821. 

HFTER  the  death  of  Pastor  Nussmann  the  church  re- 
mained vacant  for  two  years,  after  which  it  was  tem- 
porarily supplied  one  year  with  the  labors  of  Rev.  C.  A.  G. 
Storch. 

On  the  20th  day  of  May,  1794,  there  was  held  in  St. 
John's  church  a  very  important  gathering.  It  was  a  meet- 
ing of  all  of  the  Lutheran  ministers  of  North  Carolina  for 
the  purpose  of  ordaining  the  first  English  Lutheran  minister 
in  the  State.  He  was  Rev.  Robert  Johnson  Miller,  who  was 
afterwards  a  successful  worker  in  the  church. 

The  sad  effects  of  the  Revolutionary  War  were  now  to  be 
seen  everywhere.  The  morals  of  the  country  had  been  cor- 
rupted, and  infidelity,  and  its  attendent  evils,  were  abroad 
in  the  land.  All  of  the  churches  suffered,  and,  of  course, 
St.  John's  suffered  along  with  all  others.  These  were  dark 
days  for  the  congregation. 

The  French  people  had  discarded  the  Bible  and  its  teach- 
ings, and  had  gone  mad  with  "liberty."  The  same  spirit 
was  manifested  in  America,  though  not  to  the  same  extent. 
A  leading  statesman  predicted  that,  in  "fifty  years,  a  Bible 
could  not  be  found  in  America." 

With  this  period  also  dates  the  beginning  of  Rationalism 
in  the  Lutheran  Church  in  America.  The  true  faich  was 
set  aside  for  new  and  strange  doctrine,  and  the  church  was 
torn  asunder  by  divisions  and  heresies. 

At  St.  John's  the  members  were  indifferent  to  their  church 
vows;  they  neglected  the  Sacraments,  especially  the  baptism 


20 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


of  their  infants,  the  attendance  on  divine  worship  fell  off 
greatly,  and  many  who  came  were  so  boisterous  that  the 
doors  had  to  be  closed  on  them,  and  slanderous  reports  were 
freely  circulated,  and  the  giving  of  alms  was  not  observed 
at  all  by  many  of  the  members. 

At  last  the  Council  took  the  matter  up,  and  a  meeting  was 
held,  and  the  following  action  was  taken  : 

1.  Resolved,  That  the  doors  of  the  church  shall  no  longer 
be  closed  before  the  commencement  of  the  Lord's  day  ser- 
vices; but  as  soon  as  one-half  of  the  congregation  shall  have 
been  assembled,  the  doors  shall  be  opened,  and  at  10  o'clock 
the  services  of  the  sanctuary  shall  commence;  and  those  per- 
sons who  shall  be  guilty  of  making  a  disturbance  during 
service  shall  be  reported  to  the  magistrate.  The  services 
shall  also  commence  in  future  without  any  further  calling 
in  of  those  persons  who  remain  outside. 

2.  Resolved,  That  at  the  celebration  of  the  Lord's  Supper 
alms  shall  be  gathered  at  the  door.  The  members  are  fur- 
thermore requested  to  celebrate  their  marriages  in  the  church, 
at  which  time  of  rejoicing  they  and  their  benevolent  guests 
are  desired  to  contribute  alms  to  the  church,  and  to  lay  their 
mites  upon  the  altar,  as  is  the  custom  in  many  places  in  our 
Evangelical  Church. 

3.  Resolved,  That  whenever  slanderous  reports  are  circu- 
lated which  might  cause  dissensions  in  the  church,  they 
shall  be  made  known  to  our  President,  Paul  Barringer,  who 
shall  investigate  the  matter,  and  shall  decide  in  such  a  way 
as  shall  best  promote  the  interests  of  true  religion  and  the 
church. 

•4.  Resolved,  That  persons  bringing  their  children  to  the 
church  to  be  baptized  must  make  the  fact  known  before 
service,  name  the  sponsors,  the  day  of  the  child's  birth,  the 
names  of  the  parents,  so  that  it  may  be  recorded  in  the 
church  book. 

The  following  members  of  the  Council  were  present  at 
this  meeting :  Paul  Barringer,  Peter  Quillman,  George 
Meisenheimer,  Daniel  Jarrett,  Matthew  Meyer,  Xicholas 
ileitenhauer,  Jacob  Fegert,  Andreas  Stauch,  L'lrich  Durr, 
and  Jacob  Bast. 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


21 


And  the  end  of  Rev.  Storch's  first  year  as  a  supply  pastor, 
and  three  years  after  Nussman's  death,  the  congregation 
called  Rev.  Adam  Nicholas  Marcard,  who  was  laboring  at 
Cold  Water  Creek  Church.  He  come  to  St.  John's  in  1797 
and  remained  until  some  time  in  the  year  1800.  The  con- 
gregation made  some  progress  under  his  administration,  and 
he  seems  to  have  been  careful,  and  it  is  greatly  to  his  credit 
to  say  that  he  kept  a  faithful  record.  He  removed  to  South 
Carolina. 

As  the  church  was  now  vacant  again.  Rev.  C.  A.  G. 
Storch  was  again  called,  this  time  as  a  regular  pastor.  He 
continued  as  pastor  of  the  church  for  twenty-one  years.  He 
was  a  faithful  pastor,  and  his  labors  here  were  blessed  of 
God  in  the  strengthening  of  the  church  and  the  salvation 
of  many  souls. 

It  was  during  the  first  years  of  his  pastorate  here  that  the 
great  revivals  of  1800  and  1801  swept  over  the  country. 
The  infidelity  of  the  preceding  years  gave  place  to  some- 
thing akin  to  religious  fanaticism. 

This  was  the  beginning  of  revivals  in  this  country,  and  I 
will  let  Pastor  Storch  describe  them  in  his  own  words.  In 
a  letter  dated  February  25th,  1803,  he  writes  : 

"By  the  side  of  this  pestilence  (infidelity)  there  prevails 
now,  for  over  a  year,  a  something,  I  know  not  what  to  name 
it,  and  I  should  not  like  to  say  fanaticism.  Christians  of 
every  denomination  assemble  themselves  in  the  forest,  num- 
bering four,  six  and  sometimes  ten  thousand  persons;  they 
erect  tents,  sing,  pray  and  preach,  day  and  night,  for  five, 
six  and  eight  days.  I  have  been  an  eye-witness  to  scenes  in 
such  large  assemblies,  which  I  cannot  explain.  I  beheld 
young  and  old,  feeble  and  strong,  white  and  black — in  short, 
people  of'  every  age,  position  and  circumstances,  as  though 
they  were  struck  by  lightning,  speechless  and  motionless; 
and,  when  they  had  somewhat  recovered,  they  could  be  heard 
shrieking  bitterly  and  supplicating  God  for  mercy  and  grace. 

"After  they  had  thus  spent  three,  and  even  more,  hours 


22 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


they  rose  up.  praised  God,  and  commenced  to  pray  in  such 
a  manner  as  they  never  were  wont  to  do,  exhorting  sinners 
to  come  to  Jesus,  etc.  Many  of  those  who  were  thus  exer- 
cised, were  ungodly  persons  before,  and  we  can  now  discover 
a  remarkable  change  in  them.  Even  deists  have  been 
brought  to  confess  Christ  in  this  way.  Thus  this  thing  con- 
tinues even  to  this  hour. 

"Opinions  are  various  in  regard  to  it;  many,  even  minis- 
ters, denominate  it  the  work  of  the  devil;  others  again 
would  explain  it  in  a  natural  way,  or  in  accordance  with 
some  physical  law;  whilst  others  look  on  it  as  the  work  of 
God.'" 

I  also  quote  from  Rev.  Paul  Henkel  on  the  same  subject 
as  follows: 

••Towards  the  close  of  the  year  1801,  there  occurred  a 
mighty  waking  up  of  religion  among  the  English  people  in 
Guilford  and  Orange  counties,  which  caused  our  German 
people  to  understand  the  true  worth  of  the  gospel.  Both 
the  pastors  and  their  people  were  surprised,  for  it  appeared 
exceedingly  strange  to  those,  who  were  well  acquainted  with 
the  order  of  salvation,  that  true  conversion  should  consist 
in  such  a  way  as  declared  by  these  people;  that  true  faith 
should  originate  in  such  sermons,  which  caused  such  corpo- 
ral convulsions,  such  representations  of  the  devil,  death  and 
hell;  the  fearful  and  awful  expressions  of  lightning,  thun- 
der, hail,  fire  and  brimstone  against  the  sinner,  deprived 
many  of  their  senses,  and  prostrated  them  in  fainting  fits. 

••  As  the  like  proceedings  were  upheld  and  defended  by  so 
many  English  preachers,  and  as  many  had  declared,  that  by 
means  of  such  workings  they  had  received  the  true  and  re- 
liable witness  of  the  pardon  of  their  sins,  and  of  the  new 
birth,  many  of  us  hesitated  to  contradict  such  proceedings, 
although  they  were  thought  so  contrary  to  the  doctrines  of 
the  gospel.  Many  passages  of  Scripture  were  pointed  out 
as  opposed  to  those  outward  manifestations;  but  many  good 
meaning  persons  defended  them  as  scriptural,  whereupon 


History  of  St.  John's  Ohttbch. 


23 


the  important  questions  arose  among  them:  'Must  we  not 
also  experience  the  same  thing  in  order  to  be  saved?'  The 
people  became  anxious  and  concerned,  were  much  affected 
and  distressed,  pressed  upon  their  pastors  to  decide  the  mat- 
ter for  them,  who  were  unwilling  to  do  this  without  due  con- 
sideration and  the  fullest  assurance/' 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  this  spirit  of  revivalism  was  in 
all  of  the  churches.  It  was  entirely  new  in  America,  and 
to  the  Germans  in  Europe,  but  was  to  be  found  in  England 
and  Ireland  previous  to  this. 

While  it  is  true  that  the  pastor  of  St.  John's  never,  for 
a  moment,  countenanced  the  movement,  yet  it  had  a  sad 
effect  on  the  congregation.  Gradually,  however,  they  came 
back  to  the  teaching  of  the  fathers,  and  it  was  not  long  un- 
til they  were  settled  in  "the  old  paths." 

The  territory  occupied  by  the  church  was  large,  and  as 
Pastor  Storch's  health  was  bad,  and  especially  as  he  was 
almost  blind,  he  resigned  in  1803. 

Rev.  John  Henkel,  from  Virginia,  came  and  preached 
several  sermons  for  the  congregation,  which  pleased  the  peo- 
ple very  much  indeed,  and  they  extended  him  a  call  to  be- 
come their  pastor.  He  accepted  the  call  and  went  back  to 
Virginia  after  his  family,  but  God  called  him  to  his  eter- 
nal rest.  This  was  sad  news  to  them,  as  ministers  were  not 
easily  had  in  those  days. 

It  only  remained  for  Rev.  Storch  to  assume  the  pastorate 
once  more,  and,  in  his  afflicted  condition,  do  the  best  he 
could  for  the  congregation,  which  he  did  to  the  entire  satis- 
faction of  all  of  the  members. 

The  succeeding  years  brought  great  prosperity  to  the 
church.  In  1803  it  was  said  to  be  the  strongest  conon-ega- 
tion  in  Xorth  Carolina. 

In  1803  St.  John's  church  saw  the  first  of  the  many  con- 
gregations which  have  gone  out  from  her  to  establish  church 
homes  for  themselves  g)  out.  This  was  Bethel,  Stanly 
County.    The  members  of  this  church  had  nearly  all  been 


2 1 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


members  at  St.  John's  before  Bear  Creek  was  established. 

During  the  remaining  years  of  Pastor  Storeh's  labors  there 
is  nothing  of  interest  to  record,  except  the  slow  but  steady 
growth  and  development  of  the  congregation  along  all  lines. 

After  the  organization  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod  in 
1803  there  was  new  life  infused  into  all  of  the  churches. 
As  the  years  went  by  the  love  of  the  people  increased  for 
their  pastor.  But  as  he  was  scarcely  able  to  stand  up  long 
enough  to  preach  a  sermon,  his  resignation  was  reluctantly 
accepted  in  1821. 

At  the  spring  communion  in  1821,  there  were  77  persons  to 
be  confirmed,  and  the  aged  pastor,  who  was  not  able  to  stand, 
took  his  seat  in  the  altar,  and  gave  them  and  the  entire  con- 
gregation his  parting  blessing.  It  was  a  scene  never  to  be 
forgotten.  So  ended  the  labors  at  St.  John's  of  one  of  her 
most  successful  pastors.  He  died  in  1831,  and  is  buried  at 
Organ  church.  His  is  the  longest  pastorate  in  the  history 
of  the  church,  and  he  was  very  probably  the  the  most  suc- 
cessful of  all  the  pastors  of  this  church,  unless  we  except 
Rev.  Xussmann. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


FROM  1821  TO  1857. 

^T"IIE  church  now  extended  a  call  to  Rev.  Daniel  Scherer, 
who  accepted,  and  entered  upon  his  duties  at  once. 
The  following  churches  composed  the  charge  at  this  time  : 
St.  John's,  Organ,  Irish  Settlement,  now  Lutheran  Chapel, 
Union,  Crooked  Creek,  now  St.  Peters,  and  Bear  Creek, 
now  Bethel. 

Several  years  previous  to  this,  the  Xorth  Carolina  Synod 
passed  a  resolution  recommending  that  the  pastors  instruct 
the  slaves,  and  that  the  churches  provide  a  suitable  place 
for  them  to  hear  the  gospel  preached,  and  that  they  receive 
the  communion.  About  this  time  this  was  made  effective 
at  St.  John's.  From  this  time  up  to  the  emancipation  of 
the  slaves  there  is  a  "Roll  of  Colored  Members"  on  the 
church  book. 

Pastor  Scherer  was  a  wise  and  prudent  worker,  and  the 
congregation  was  very  prosperous  during  his  incumbency. 

About  the  year  1830  many  of  the  members  removed  to  the 
West,  particularly  to  Illinois,  there  to  form  new  homes  in 
the  wilderness,  and  Rev.  Scherer  felt  that  it  was  his  duty 
to  accompany  them,  and  to  look  after  the  interests  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  in  this  new  field.  He  therefore  resigned 
in  1832,  after  ten  years  of  acceptable  service  to  the  church. 
It  may  be  of  interest  to  the  reader  to  know  that  he  suc- 
ceeded in  establishing,  in  1834,  at  Hillsbaro,  Illinois,  the 
first  Lutheran  church  in  the  State. 

Rev.  Henry  Graeber  was  called  as  pastor  of  the  church  in 


26 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


1832,  and  at  once  begin  the  work.  He  was  a  native  of 
Pennsylvania,  but  of  late  years  had  been  preaching  in  Lin- 
coln and  Rowan  Counties,  X.  C.  He  was  also  a  practicing 
physician. 

Shortly  after  he  came  to  St.  John's  a  second  wave  of 
"revivalism*'  swept  through  the  churches.  The  North 
Carolina  Synod  never,  in  all  of  its  history  of  nearly  100 
years,  has  followed  any  of  the  "  new  methods/'  but  on  the 
contrary  she  has  always  catechised  her  children,  yet  many 
of  her  churches  felt  the  effects  of  "this  strange  fire." 

The  system  was  introduced  by  Rev.  Daniel  Jenkins,  from 
Maryland,  in  1835.  It  reached  all  churches  and  all  classes 
of  people.  Finally,  the  crowds  were  so  large  that  they  could 
not  be  accommodated  in  the  churches,  and  they  began  to 
worship  in  tents,  or  ''arbors."  One  of  these  was  built, 
eventually,  within  the  bounds  of  St.  John's  congregation, 
where  now  stands  a  church  of  another  denomination.  Dr. 
Bernheim  says  that  "  many  of  the  churches  were  revived  to 
death  !" 

From  this  time  dates  the  establishment  of  the  "  camp- 
meeting,"  which  often  continued  for  two  or  three  weeks. 
Nevertheless,  St.  John's  did  not  get  far  from  her  moorings, 
as  Pastor  Graeber  was  a  faithful  servant  of  the  church.  For 
more  than  eleven  years  did  this  man  of  God  go  ''out  and  in 
before  this  people,"  and  did  what  he  could  to  ''strengthen 
the  things  that  remained,"  and  God  blessed  the  labor  of  his 
hands  in  the  building  up  of  the  church  greatly. 

In  the  year  1837,  St.  Stephen's  congregation  was  organ- 
ized. It  is  located  about  nine  miles  northeast  of  St.  John's, 
and  most  of  the  charter  members  had  belonged  here.  This 
was  the  second  church  which  was  organized  from  the  mem- 
bership of  St.  John's  church. 

Nothing  remains  to  be  recorded  except  a  faithful  per- 
formance of  duty.  Pastor  Graeber  resigned  in  1842,  and 
much  regret  was  expressed  by  the  congregation. 

They  were  now  vacant  for  a  period  of  two  years.    A  call 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


27 


was  then  extended  to  Rev.  John  D.  Sc'heck,  of  Salisbury, 
X.  C,  but  who  had  lately  been  laboring  in  South  Carolina. 
He  came  to  St.  John's  in  1844,  and  remained  until  1857. 
His  was  a  most  successful  work  here.  The  thirteen  years 
which  he  spent  here  were  years  of  real  progress.  Xo  divis- 
ions, of  any  moment,  discurbed  the  church  or  hindered  the 
spiritual  growth.  Large  classes  were  catechised  and  con- 
firmed each  year.  The  pastor's  fame  spread  abroad,  and  his 
influence  increased,  and  it  was  soon  seen  that  the  house 
was  too  small  to  accommodate  the  large  number  of  people 
who  attended  the  services  on  the  Lord's  day.  They  were 
at  that  time  worshiping  in  the  "  Old  Red  Meeting-House, " 
which,  when  it  was  built  in  1785,  was  the  best  house  of  wor- 
ship in  the  county.  It  was  reasonably  large,  and  indeed  a 
very  comfortable  building.  It  was  a  frame  structure,  and 
constructed  from  the  best  material  to  be  had  at  that  time. 
After  the  new  house  was  completed  the  material  of  the  old 
house  was  sold  to  private  parties.  The  frame  is  in  the  dwel- 
ling now  owned  and  occupied  by  Mr.  H.  H.  Black  welder, 
and  some  of  the  other  material — notable  weather  board- 
ing— is  to  be  found  on  the  dwelling  house  of  Mr.  S.  M. 
Ritchie. 

This  house  stood  in  the  middle  of  the  graveyard,  and 
after  it  was  torn  away  the  ground  on  which  it  stood  was  all 
utilized  for  burying  purposes. 

The  schoolhouse,  too.  long  since  has  yielded  to  the  tooth 
of  time,  and  a  little  debris  from  the  stone  chimney  only  re- 
mains to  mark  the  place  where  it  stood.  Mr.  Martin  S. 
Ludwig  taught  the  last  session  of  school  here,  and  many  of 
his  former  pupils  are  still  living. 

Pastor  Scheck  and  his  people  very  wisely  decided  to 
make  the  new  church  both  large  and  substantial.  The  peo- 
ple did  a  large  part  of  the  work  with  their  own  hands,  and 
besides  this,  they  gave  liberally  of  their  means  towards  the 
other  expenses,  and  as  a  result  the  church,  when  finished, 
was  the  largest  and  best  in  this  part  of  the  State  at  that  time. 


28 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


The  fund  which  had  been  secured  in  Europe  in  1772,  and 
which  now  amounted  to  $1500,  was  used  at  this  time  towards 
defraying  the  expense  of  this  building. 

The  house  was  commenced  in  18-45.  The  walls  are  still 
standing.  The  brick  were  made  on  the  land  belonging  to 
the  congregation,  near  where  the  church  stands,  just  to  the 
north,  and  the  labor  was  performed  by  the  members.  The 
dimensions  of  the  building  are  eighty  by  fifty-five  feet.  It 
was  located  not  far  from  the  western  wall  of  the  graveyard, 
on  the  outside.  The  pulpit  was  in  the  west  end,  with  a  gal- 
lery in  the  east  end,  and  it  was  supposed  to  comfortably 
seat  six  hundred  people. 

When  the  corner-stone  was  laid  there  was  gathered  next 
to  the  largest  crowd  which  has  ever  met  at  this  church. 
The  people  came  from  a  great  distance,  and  the  service  was 
very  impressive.  A  Bible,  hymn  book,  various  papers  and 
writings,  and  several  five  dollar  gold  pieces  were  put  into 
the  vault,  and  then  all  of  the  brick  masons  present,  assisted 
by  the  members,  built  up  the  wall  over  it  as  high  as  they 
could  reach  before  they  went  home.  The  work  went  steadily 
on  until  the  church  was  completed,  "for  the  people  had  a 
mind  to  work/''  It  was  their  intention  to  make  it  durable 
and  comfortable  rather  than  fine,  and  in  this  they  succeeded 
admirably. 

At  length  the  house  was  finished,  and  the  date  set  for'the 
dedication  was  the  22nd  day  of  August,  1846.  There  was 
present  on  this  occasion  the  largest  crowd  ever  assembled 
here.  Pastor  Scheck  and  as  many  of  the  people  as  could 
find  room  assembled  in  the  old  church,  while  many  others 
waited  on  the  outside.  They  formally  bid  adieu  to  the  old 
church,  and  then,  the  pastor  leading,  all  solemnly  marched 
into  the  new  church,  which,  after  a  suitable  sermon,  was 
dedicated  to  God. 

This  house  was  used,  without  many  alterations,  for  more 
than  forty  years,  and  the  walls  are  still  standing,  and  to  all  ap- 
pearances are  none  the  worse  for  their  fifty-three  years  service. 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


29 


For  many  years  after  this  the  church  was  very  prosperous, 
gathering  in  new  material  each  year,  and  her  influence  was 
greater  than  it  had  ever  been. 

The  German  language  was  gradually  giving  place  to  the 
English,  especially  among  the  young  people.  The  language 
which  was  used  by  the  early  settlers  was  not,  however, 
pure  German,  but  what  is  commonly  called  "Pennsylvania 
Dutch."  At  first  it  was  the  only  language  used,  but  it  has 
almost  entirely  disappeared  to-day.  There  are  only  ten  or 
a  dozen  members,  all  very  old  people,  who  can  speak  it  now, 
and  probably  as  many  more  who  can  understand  it,  but  can- 
not speak  it  at  all. 

Pastor  Scheck  continued  in  the  love  and  confidence  of 
his  people  until  1857,  when  he  offered  his  resignation.  It 
was  accepted  promptly,  as  it  has  always  been  the  rule,  and 
is  yet,  to  accept  all  resignations  offered  by  pastors  or  any  of 
the  officers.  Some  pastors  have  a  way  of  resigning  to  "test 
their  popularity,"  but  this  congregation  has  always  discour- 
aged such  a  course  by  accepting. 

Pastor  Scheck  removed  to  Alamance  County,  N.  C.  He 
had  been  at  St.  John's  thirteen  years. 

The  congregation  was  now  vacant,  and  remained  so  for 
one  year,  during  which  they  lost  some  ground,  as  these  va- 
cancies, though  they  are  of  short  duration,  are  exceedingly 
disastrous  in  their  effects.  They  were  supplied,  however, 
by  the  neighboring  ministers  with  occasional  services  until 
they  secured  a  pastor  in  1858. 


CHAPTER  V. 


FROM  1857  TO  1S76. 

**|  N  the  year  1858  the  congregation  extended  a  call  to  the 
Rev.  G.  D.  Bernheira,  of  Charleston,  S.  C,  who  accepted,, 
and  entered  upon  his  duties  at  once.  He  preached  a  pure 
doctrine,  and  did  much  to  keep  the  church  "in  the  old 
paths'''  during  these  troublous  times,  for  the  Civil  War  was 
drawing  near,  and  the  existing  conditions,  both  in  church 
and  state,  were  being  disturbed  as  never  before. 

The  year  of  1858  is  noted  as  the  great  revival  year  of  the 
century.  A  wave  of  religious  enthusiasm  spread  over  the 
entire  country,  and  it  is  estimated  that  58,000  persons  con- 
nected themselves  with  the  different  churches  in  the  United 
States  that  year,  over  and  above  the  normal  increase. 

In  the  year  1858  Pastor  Bernheim  confirmed  80  persons. 
This  large  confirmation  was  followed  by  a  special  revival  at 
St.  John's.  This  was  probably  the  largest  meeting  of  this 
kind  ever  held  here.  The  excitement  was  intense,  and  the 
people  were  thoroughly  aroused.  At  some  of  these  meet- 
ings the  peoj:>le  would  encamp  near  the  church,  and  for  this 
purpose  some  had  houses  built  near  the  church  for  temporary 
habitation,  while  others. lived  in  tents.  This  encampment 
was  near  the  church  to  the  southeast. 

Then  the  war  spirit  was  abroad.  Preparation  was  being 
made  for  the  coming  conflict  of  arms,  and  big  "musters" 
were  being  held,  and  the  people  were  disturbed  and  excited. 
However,  the  conditions  at  St.  John's  were  more  favorable 
than  might  have  been  expected  under  such  circumstances. 
The  Word  was  preached  and  the  sacraments  administered 
regularly,  and  the  church  made  progress. 


History  or  St.  John's  Church. 


31 


Since  about  1835  the  congregation  had  service  twice  each 
month,  instead  of  only  once,  as  had  been  the  custom  when 
there  were  several  congregations  in  the  charge.  One  of 
these  was  preached  in  English  and  the  other  in  German. 

For  sometime  St.  John's  and  Bear  Creek,  or  Bethel,  con- 
stituted a  charge,  and,  as  they  had  no  parsonage,  the  pas- 
tor usually  lived  at  Mt.  Pleasant,  and  furnished  his  own 
house.  Pastor  Scheck  lived  there  in  his  own  house,  built 
by  himself.  The  house  is  now  occupied  by  Captain  Jonas 
Cook.  So  when  Pastor  Bernheim  came  there  was  felt  the 
need  of  a  parsonage,  and  the  two  congregutions  proceeded 
to  build  a  house  at  once. 

The  joint  Council  met  on  the  23rd  of  January,  1858,  and 
appointed  a  committee  to  draw  up  a  plan  and  to  estimate 
the  cost  of  the  proposed  house,  consisting  of  Pastor  Bern- 
heim, Matthew  Petrea  and  A.  Blackwelder. 

A  building  committee  was  also  appointed,  as  follows  : 
Daniel  Barrier,  N".  H.  Barringer  and  Jacob  A  Fisher. 

The  following  members  were  appointed  to  secure  the 
funds  :  John  A.  Troutman,  J.  M.  Harkey,  Josiah  Litaker 
and  Harris  Cress. 

The  question  of  the  location  now  came  before  the  churches, 
and  it  was  a  matter  of  sharp  contention  at  St.  John's. 
Those  members  who  lived  in  and  near  Mt.  Pleasant  wanted 
it  there,  while  those  who  lived  near  to  and  beyond  the 
church,  on  the  other  side,  wanted  it  located  at  the  church. 
A  special  congregational  meeting  was  held,  at  which  the 
matter  was  decided.  It  was  agreed  that  only  those  mem- 
bers who  had  subscribed  to  the  building  fund  should  have  a 
vote.  Pastor  Bernheim  made  a  lengthy  address  on  the  sub- 
ject, and  there  was  great  interest  manifested  by  both  sides. 
AVhen  the  vote  was  taken  it  stood:  Mt.  Pleasant  47,  St. 
John's  42.  It  was  accordingly  located  at  Mt.  Pleasant,  and 
soon  completed.  It  was  a  very  good  house,  and  was  occu- 
pied by  the  successive  pastors  for  a  number  of  years.  It  is 
now  occupied  by  Mrs.  Dreher. 


32 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


This  is  the  first  parsonage  ever  owned  by  the  congrega- 
tion, and  was  disposed  of,  when  the  present  one  was  built, 
while  Rev.  Petrea  was  pastor. 

In  1849  an  effort  was  made  to  have  services  three  Sun- 
days in  each  month  by  the  congregation.  And  it  really 
seemed  just  that  they  should  have  three-fourths  of  the  time, 
as  they  were  paving  three-fourths  of  the  salary.  This,  of 
course,  was  opposed  by  Bethel,  and  it  was  the  occasion  of  a 
sharp  contest.  It  was  finally  decided  as  follows:  "That 
the  first  Sunday  be  considered  the  disputed  Sunday,  and 
that  it  be  divided  between  the  two  churches."  This  meant 
two  Sundays  of  each  month  for  St.  John's  and  three  Sun- 
days of  each  alternate  month.  It  was  not  long,  however, 
before  three  regular  Sundays  were  secured. 

It  was  30  years  yet  before  the  congregation  was  able  to 
r.iake  the  necessary  arrangements  to  have  preaching  every 
Lord's  day.  This  arrangement  was  effected  in  1888  by 
Pastor  Keller. 

Pastor  Bernheim  kept  the  church  book  in  good  order, 
making  all  necessary  entries. 

The  book  then  in  use  was  about  full,  and  the  pastor,  in 
1858,  purchased  in  Charleston,  S.  C,  the  book  now  in  use 
by  the  congregation. 

Pastor  Bernheim  remained  only  two  years  at  St.  John's, 
as  he  resigned  in  August,  1859,  and  removed  to  Mt.  Pleas- 
ant, X.  C,  and  became  the  financial  agent  of  North  Caro- 
lina College. 

As  the  congregation  was  vacant  again  a  call  was  immedi- 
ately extended  to  Rev.  J.  B.  Anthony,  of  Lovettsville,  Vir- 
ginia. He  began  work  at  once,  some  time  in  the  year  1860. 
He  is  known  as  "our  war  preacher,"  among  the  people  even 
yet,  as  he  was  here  during  the  entire  time  the  war  lasted,  and 
even  some  time  after,  leaving  in  1867. 

These  were  the  darkest  days  in  the  history  of  the  congre- 
gation, not  even  excepting  the  perilous  times  of  the  Revo- 
lutionary War.    These  Germans  and  their  descendants  are 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


33 


now,  and  have  always  been,  intensely  patriotic.  They  bore 
their  share  of  the  suffering,  losses  and  ruin  of  the  war.  At 
first  the  church  saw  her  young  men  go  to  the  front.  Many  a 
parent  gave  the  son  a  Bible  and  a  parting  blessing,  and 
added,  with  tears,  "  Go,  my  son,  fight  for  your  country, 
and  if  needs  be,  die  in  her  defense!"  And  they  went,  and 
a  few  returned  in  four  years,  and  many  of  them  found  a 
soldier's  honored  grave. 

Thus  was  the  church  deprived  of  her  yound  men,  and  the 
families  were  in  distress  and  sorrow.  Those  who  had  hoped 
that  the  war  would  be  of  short  duration  were  disappointed 
at  the  end  of  the  first  year  to  find  that  the  war  had  only 
really  began  in  earnest,  and  that  the  lives  sacrificed  up  to 
this  time  were  but  a  prelude  to  the  greater  loss  of  life  and 
limb,  and  suffering,  and  destruction  of  property,  for  the 
next  three  years. 

Recruits  were  called  out  to  take  the  place  of  the  killed 
and  disabled.  New  regiments  were  formed  as  long  as  a  vol- 
unteer was  to  be  had,  and  then  governmental  machinery  was 
put  in  motion  to  compel  them  to  go,  taking  the  strong 
men  of  middle  life,  and  so  none  were  left  except  old  men 
and  boys.  And  finally  these  were  called  out  too,  and  the 
women  were  left  to  care  for  themselves  and  the  little  ones 
alone.    And  St.  John's  bore  her  full  share  of  all. 

During  all  these  years  Pastor  Anthony  was  faithful  to  the 
church.  He  labored  for  a  very  small  salary,  because  there 
were  few  to  do  anything.  All  of  the  trials  and  the  suffer- 
ing and  the  losses  of  these  four  years  will  never  be  disclosed 
until  the  final  day  of  reckoning. 

At  last  the  war  was  over,  and  there  was  the  home  coming. 
Fresh  from  the  battlefield,  from  the  foul  prisons  of  the 
North,  and  from  the  different  posts  of  duty,  these  honored 
soldiers  came  back.  But  not  all  !  Nor  will  these  ever, 
come,  for  they  sleep  on  many  a  battlefield,  in  many  a  hos- 
pital graveyard  ! 

And  those  who  came  back  found  a  great  change.  There 


34 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


was  no  money,  and  food  was  scarce,  and  poverty  seemed  to 
be  everywhere.  Added  to  this  was  the  doubt  and  uncer- 
tainty in  regard  to  the  government.  The  negroes,  who 
were  intoxicated  with  their  new  "  freedom/'  were  a  source 
of  annoyance,  and  there  was  a  feeling  of  unrest  and  dissat- 
isfaction everywhere. 

As  if  these  things  were  not  enough,  we  must  yet  add  the 
general  demoralizing  influence  which  follows  every  war.  But 
the  pastor  gathered  the  people  together  again,  and  it  was 
not  long  before  the  congregation  began  to  show  signs  of 
renewed  life  and  activity.  The  two  years  next  following 
the  close  of  the  war  were  very  prosperous.  Many  were 
added  to  the  church,  and  the  pastor  was  more  popular  with 
the  people  than  ever.  He  had  been  with  them  in  their  dark- 
est days,  and  they  showed  their  appreciation  in  many  ways. 

Pastor  Anthony  resigned  in  18G7,  and  went  to  South 
Carolina.  He  was  very  popular  with  the  people.  He  at 
one  time  was  a  minister  in  the  Methodist  church,  and  had 
been  very  successful. 

The  church  now  extended  a  call  to  Rev.  L.  C.  Groseclose, 
a  native  of  Virginia.  He  accepted,  and  entered  upon  his 
duties  in  May,  1867. 

The  congregation  had  by  this  time  partially  recovered 
from  the  effects  of  the  war.  Still,  the  spiritual  life  of  the 
members  was  at  a  low  ebb,  but  they  only  needed  to  be 
aroused  to  a  fuller  sense  of  duty.  The  first  work  of  the 
new  pastor  was  intended  to  remedy  this  effect,  and  he  was 
wonderfully  successful. 

Then  great  material  prosperity  came  to  the  people,  as  cot- 
ton was  grown,  at  this  time,  at  a  great  profit.  Their 
property  was  speedily  recovered,  and  a  spirit  of  benevolence 
was  awakened  among  the  members.  But  there  remained 
much  to  be  done  yet.  The  Sunday  School,  even,  had  been 
discontinued  for  several  years,  on  account  of  lack  of  interest. 

In  December,  1867,  the  congregation  was  asked  for  a  con- 
tribution for  the  "  erection  and  endowment  of  a  Theologi- 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


35 


cal  Seminary  in  the  South/'  The  collection  was  taken  on 
the  second  Sunday  in  this  month,  and  amounted  to  SI 70. 
Also,  on  the  30th  day  of  December,  1867,  the  Book  of 
Worship  was  introduced  in  the  congregation,  and  was  re- 
ceived with  great  joy  by  the  people. 

Pastor  Groseclose  believed  in  the  "protracted  meeting," 
and  held  them  in  his  church,  some  of  which  last  several 
weeks.  One  of  these  was  held  in  December  of  this  year, 
and  lasted  twenty-two  days,  during  which  nine  ministers 
preached  44  sermons.  Recorded  in  the  church  book  is  the 
result,  as  follows  :  "  There  were  in  all  about  70  conversions, 
nearly  all  of  whom  were  members  of  the  church." 

Pastor  Groseclose  continued  to  hold  these  meetings  each 
year  while  he  was  here,  but  with  him,  in  1872,  passed  the 
"protracted  meeting,"  as  none  are  recorded  after  this  date. 

It  seems,  from  the  record  of  1869  and  1870,  that  the 
church  made  little,  if  any,  progress  during  these  years. 
No  members  were  received,  and  the  pastor  says :  "  The 
efforts  of  the  people  to  raise  cotton  and  make  money  were 
so  strenuous  that  the  spiritual  condition  has  rather  declined. " 

Several  sermons  were  preached  on  this  subject,  and  as  a 
result  quite  a  number  of  the  members  became  offended. 
The  pastor  was  at  the  point  of  leaving,  but  the  matter  was 
arranged,  and  he  remained. 

At  Easter,  in  the  spring  of  1871,  the  service  was  very 
long,  as  there  was  communion  on  that  day  and  also  quite  a 
number  of  children  to  be  baptized.  The  Council  requested 
that  hereafter  on  such  occasions  the  liturgical  part  of  the 
service  be  omitted.  This  did  not  meet  with  the  approba- 
tion of  the  pastor,  who  reported  the  action  of  the  Council 
to  the  Conference  at  Ebenezer  April  28th. 

On  the  29th  a  resolution  was  passed  "requesting  the 
Council  of  St.  John's  church  not  to  require  their  minister 
to  violate  a  plain  duty." 

It  is  safe  to  add  that  this  incident  did  not  increase  his 
popularity  with  his  people. 


36  History  of  St.  John's  Church. 

The  year  1871  was  a  very  prosperous  year  for  the  congre- 
gation. The  spiritual  life  of  the  people  was  improved,  and 
51  new  members  were  received  into  the  church. 

Pastor  Groseclose  was  a  devoted  man,  and  did  a  good 
work  here,  and  still  holds  a  high  place  in  the  estimation  of 
the  people.  He  resigned  in  January,  1872,  and  is  now  liv- 
ing in  Kansas. 

During  his  pastorate  two  new  congregations  were  organ- 
ized from  the  membership  of  St.  John's. 

Mt.  Herman,  located  9  miles  southwest  of  St.  John's 
church,  was  organized  in  1868. 

Also  in  the  same  year  Holy  Trinity  congregation  was  or- 
ganized in  the  Chapel  of  Xorth  Carolina  College,  Mt.  Pleas- 
ant. Their  house  of  worship  was  built  five  years  later. 
Both  of  these  are  the  direct  offspring  of  St.  John's  church. 

The  congregation  was  vacant  only  a  short  time  until  a 
call  was  extended  to  Rev.  D.  M.  Henkel. 

He  came  in  1872  and  remained  until  some  time  in  1875, 
making  his  pastorate  here  about  two  and  one-half  years. 

During  this  time  nothing  of  any  importance  occurred  in 
the  church.  Scarcely  any  entries  were  made  in  the  church 
book,  and  it  is  presumed  that  the  church  was  fairly  pros- 
perous. It  is  doubtful  whether  his  temper  and  feelings  were 
such  as  would  make  him  the  successful  pastor  of  a  congre- 
gation such  as  this  is. 

The  bond,  nqver  too  strong,  between  pastor  and  people 
was  severed  in  1875,  and  he  removed  to  another  field  of  labor. 

A  short  vacancy  did  not  improve  matters  any,  and  so  the 
year  1876  did  not  find  the  congregation  in  a  very  good 
condition. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


FROM  1S76  TO  THE  PRESENT  (1899). 

'^'HE  congregation  now  extended  a  call  to  Rev.  R.  W. 

Petrea,  a  native  of  Rowan  County,  N.  C,  who  had 
just  finished  his  second  year  at  the  Theological  Seminary. 
He  accepted  and  entered  upon  his  duties  at  once.  The 
church  was  on  the  decline  at  this  time,  and  it  seems  that  it 
took  the  new  pastor  some  time  to  get  hold  of  the  work. 

One  source  of  trouble  was  that  the  rents  from  the  farm  be- 
longing to  the  church  had  been  paid  on  the  pastor's  salary 
contrary  to  the  wishes  of  a  part  of  the  congregation. 

Another  was  that  the  officers,  at  least  a  part  of  them,  had 
been  in  office  for  many  years,  and  the  management  of  the 
affairs  of  the  church  was  continually  in  the  same  hands. 

Then  there  was  no  system  of  rotation  in  office,  but  the 
officers  were  elected  "for  life  or  good  behavior." 

Yet  another  was  the  lack  of  system  in  raising  the  neces- 
sary funds  for  defraying  the  expenses  of  the  church,  includ- 
ing the  pastor's  salary. 

Just  at  this  time  the  liquor  question  was  brought  to  the 
attention  of  the  authorities  of  the  church. 

All  of  these  problems  required  the  attention  of  the  Coun- 
cil, and  it  was  acknowledged  by  all  to  be  a  very  critical  pe- 
riod in  the  history  of  the  church. 

Some  of  these  questions  were  settled  in  a  very  satisfactory 
way  soon,  while  others  required  time. 

In  regard  to  the  money  from  the  rents  of  the  farm,  it  was 
decided  to  pay  this  "  on  back  salary  hereafter/'  There  was 
a  considerable  amount  due  in  this  way,  and  by  giving  notes 


38 


History  of  St.  Johx's  Church. 


of  the  Council  for  the  amount  clue,  it  was  hoped  eventually 
to  pay  all. 

But  the  congregation  was  getting  more  in  debt  each  year, 
and  it  was  decided  to  try  a  new  plan.  Accordingly  an  as- 
sessment was  made  upon  each  member  along  with  their  usual 
subscriptions  to  the  pastor's  salary.  Each  male  member  was 
assessed  81.50,  and  each  female  member  75  cents.  This 
was  never  enforced,  and  little  good  came  of  it.  The  ques- 
tion was  not  finally  settled  until  ten  years  afterward,  when 
this  plan  was  amended  and  enforced. 

In  the  year  1879  the  congregation  very  wisely  decided  that 
it  would  be  to  their  advantage  to  have  their  pastor  live  in 
their  midst  instead  of  at  Mt.  Pleasant.  They  accordingly 
sold  their  interest  in  the  parsonage  there  to  the  Bethel  con- 
gregation, and  immediately  took  steps  to  build  one  for 
themselves. 

Mr.  Archibald  Cline  was  the  Treasurer  of  the  congrega- 
tion at  this  time,  and  the  financial  part  was  largely  managed 
by  him.  Mr.  Matthew  Petrea  was  the  chairman  of  the 
building  committee,  and  Mr.  W.  W.  Safrit  was  the 
contractor. 

The  new  parsonage  was  located  92  yards  west  of  the 
church.  It  is  a  frame  structure,  built  of  good  material, 
and  the  work  is  of  a  good  quality  also.  The  house  contains 
7  rooms,  and  is  partly  furnished  by  the  church.  Besides 
the  dwelling  they  also  erected  all  other  necessary  buildings, 
such  as  stables,  etc. 

The  parsonage  is  a  very  comfortable  one,  and  is  kept  in 
splendid  repair,  a  new  coat  of  paint  having  been  applied 
lately.  Like  the  church  it  is  large  and  well  arranged,  and 
the  people  are  justly  proud  of  both. 

It  is  easy  to  see  now  that  it  would  have  been  better  for 
the  church  here,  and  probably  for  Bethel  too,  if  the  other 
house  had  been  located  here  in  1857. 

In  1878  Mt.  Olive  congregation  was  organized  directly 
from  the  membership  of  St.  John's.    They  built  a  house  of 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


39 


worship  4  miles  northeast  of  St.  John's  church,  and  the 
mother  congregation  was  very  active  in  assisting  them  in 
every  way  to  he  comfortably  situated  in  their  new  home. 
Mr.  Isaac  Beaver  was  the  leading  spirit  in  the  new  organiza- 
tion, and  much  of  the  success  of  the  enterprise  was  due  to 
his  efforts. 

Soon  after  this  Pastor  Petrea  began  to  preach  in  a  school- 
house  in  Rimer,  4J  miles  north  of  St.  John's,  and  in  a  short 
time  a  congregation  was  organized  here  under  the  name  of 
Prosperity.  A  new  church  was  built,  and  the  congregation 
was  soon  firmly  established  in  their  new  home. 

About  this  time  the  congregation  was  asked  to  contribute 
something  for  the  Lutheran  Mission  at  Richmond,  Va.  A 
sermon  was  preached  and  the  offering  was  gathered  and 
amounted  to  8150.  St.  John's  has  always  responded  to  all 
of  the  demands  of  the  general  work  in  the  matter  of  Chris- 
tian giving. 

At  this  time,  1879,  "some  of  the  members  objected  to 
the  pastor's  administrations,"  according  to  the  record,  and 
there  was  a  good  deal  of  confusion  in  the  church.  The 
pastor  talked  of  resigning,  and  some  of  the  deacons  did  re- 
sign their  places  in  the  Council.  Happily  the  matter  was 
adjusted  and  the  pastor  decided  to  remain. 

In  regard  to  the  liquor  question  it  was  resolved  by  the 
Council :  "That  every  member  found  guilty  of  intoxication 
shall  be  dealt  with  according  to  the  discipline  of  our  church." 
This  was  ordered  to  be  read  from  the  pulpit  on  the  next 
T  ord's  day. 

However,  beginning  with  1880  the  conditions  improved. 
The  finances  were  somewhat  improved,  and  the  pastor  was 
exceedingly  popular  with  the  people,  and  the  spiritual  con- 
dition of  the  members  was  greatly  improved,  the  spirit  of 
benevolence  was  increased,  and  there  were  signs  of  pros- 
perity in  all  of  the  different  lines  of  church  work.  Large 
classes  were  catechised  and  confirmed,  and  the  Word  was 


4(> 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


preached  with  power,  and  had  its  effect.  The  church  was 
freed  from  debt,  and  the  pastor's  salary  was  increased. 

The  relation  of  the  present  congregation  at  Cold  Water 
to  St.  John's  is  somewhat  peculiar.  This  new  organization 
was  effected  in  1881  largely  from  the  membership  of  St. 
John's,  but  the  grounds  are  among  the  very  oldest  church 
grounds  in  this  part  of  the  country.  The  German  Reform 
congregation  here  had  a  pastor  in  1768  named  Slither. 

In  the  year  1811  a  Lutheran  organization  was  effected 
and  in  1813  this  was  removed  to  Concord  and  assumed  the 
name  of  St.  James. 

The  Reforms  did  not  thrive  at  Cold  Water,  and  ere  long 
there  was  no  organization  there. 

So  this  new  Cold  Water  is  largely  made  up  from  the  mem- 
bership of  St.  John's. 

May  loth,  1882,  the  roll  of  membership  was  gone  over 
carefully  by  the  Council  and  all  of  the  names  of  parties  who 
had  no  legal  right  to  the  same  were  removed  from  the  roll. 
More  than  one  hundred  names  were  thus  removed. 

For  several  years  the  progress  of  the  church  was  not  dis- 
turbed in  any  way  except  at  one  time,  and  this  was  caused 
by  the  sickness  of  the  pastor,  who  was  not  able  to  attend  to 
his  duties  for  some  time. 

The  congregation  was  working  under  a  Constitution  which 
served  well  the  purpose  in  other  days,  but  which  was  clearly 
behind  the  times. 

It  was  decided  to  make  an  effort  to  secure  one  in  accordance 
with  the  requirements  of  the  church.  As  it  was  the  begin- 
ning of  the  reforms  of  the  last  ten  or  more  years  which 
have  so  modernized  the  congregation  as  to  give  it  its  present 
strength  and  power,  I  will  give  it  in  full.  It  has  been 
amended  several  times  since  it  was  first  adopted,  and  I  give 
it  in  its  amended  form  as  follows  : 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


41 


CONSTITUTION  OF  ST.  JOHN'S  EVANGEL- 
ICAL LUTHERAN  CHURCH. 


ARTICLE  I. 

NAME  AND  OFFICERS  OF  THE  CONGREGATION. 

Section  1.  The  name  of  the  congregation  shall  be  St. 
John's  E.  L,  Church. 

Sec.  2.  The  officers  of  this  congregation  are  :  (a)  Three 
trustees,  (fi)  four  Elders,  (c)  four  Deacons — which  consti- 
tute the  Church  Council. 

Sec.  3.  The  Pastor  is  ex-officio  President  of  the  Church 
Council. 

Sec.  4.  The  Church  Council  elects  out  of  their  midst  one 
Vice  President,  a  Secretary,  and  a  Treasurer. 

Sec.  5.  A  majority  of  the  members  of  the  Church  Coun- 
cil constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business. 

Sec.  6.  Members  of  the  Church  Council,  whose  time  of 
office  has  expired,  are  immediately  re-eligible. 

ARTICLE  II. 

THE  DUTIES  AND   PRIVILEGES  OF  THE  OFFICERS. 

Section  1.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  Trustees  conscientiously 
to  take  charge  of  and  protect  all  the  property  of  the 
congregation. 

Sec.  2.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  Elders  with  the  pastor,  to 
promote,  according  to  their  utmost  ability,  discipline  and 
order,  peace  and  harmony,  in  the  congregation,  as  well  as  to 
assist  into  carrying  into  effect  all  measures  of  the  Church 
Council  and  Congregation,  and  in  the  absence  of  the  pastor 
conduct  divine  worship. 

Sec.  3.  The  duty  of  the  Deacons  consists  in  collecting 
all  dues  of  the  church,  taking  up  Sunday's  collections,  and 
to  hand  over  all  moneys  thus  collected  to  the  Treasurer, 
and  take  his  receipt  for  the  same;  besides,  to  provide  the 
elements  for  the  Lord's  Supper  and  to  take  charge  of  the 
sacramentat  vessels. 

Sec.  4.  The  President  shall  preside  at  all  meetings  of  the 
Church  Council  and  the  Congregation.  In  case  when  the 
congregation  is  without  a  pastor,  or  thevpastor  be  absent,  or 


4-> 


History  of  St.  John's  Chcrch. 


should  decline  to  act  as  chairman,  then  the  V'ce-President 
is  to  take  his  place.  Should  the  latter  be  absent,  or  decline 
to  preside,  then  the  congregation  shall  elect  a  President 
pro  tempore. 

Sec.  5.  The  Secretary  shall  keep  a  faithful  record  of  all 
the  proceedings  of  the  Church  Council  and  Congregation, 
and  preserve  all  documents  of  the  congregation  carefully. 
He  shall  immediately,  after  the  opening  of  each  session, 
read  the  minutes  of  the  preceding  meeting  distinctly  and 
audibly,  and,  after  they  are  confirmed,  record  them  in  a 
book  provided  for  that  purpose.  Should  he  be  unable  or 
unwilling  to  attend  any  meeting,  he  shall  hand  the  minutes 
of  the  preceding  meeting  to  the  presiding  officer  in  due  time, 
so  that  he  may  appoint  a  Secretary  pro  tempore.  Whenever 
the  Secretary  shall  go  out  of  office,  he  shall  hand  over  to  his 
successor  all  papers,  books  and  documents  belonging  to  the 
congregation,  and  take  his  receipt  for  the  same. 

Sec.  6.  The  Treasurer  shall  receive  and  administer  all 
funds  coming  into  his  hands  for  the  benefit  of  the  congre- 
gation, out  of  which  he  is  to  pay  all  bills  that  have  been 
approved  by  the  signature  of  the  Vice-President  or  Secre- 
tary. When  the  term  of  his  office  has  expired,  he  shall  de- 
live  all  moneys  and  receipts  to  his  successor,  and  take  his 
receipt  for  the  same. 

Sec.  7.  The  pastor's  duty  is  to  preach  at  his  regular  ap- 
pointments and  festival  days,  whenever  this  is  practical;  he 
shall  take  charge  of  the  Church  Record-Book,  and  make  all 
entries  therein  of  his  ministerial  acts.  He  shall  visit  the 
sick,  instruct  the  catechumens,  and  administer  the  sacra- 
ments ;  in  short,  he  shall  faithfully  and  conscientiously  dis- 
charge all  the  duties  of  an  Evangelical  Lutheran  minister. 
He  shall  be  a  member  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Synod 
of  North  Carolina,  so  that,  in  case  of  a  neglect  of  duty  on 
his  part,  he  can  be  brought  to  account  for  the  same. 

ARTICLE  III. 

OF  THE  MEMBERS  OF  THE  CONGREGATION". 

Section  1.  Whoever  has  been  baptized  and  confirmed  in 
an  Evangelical  Protestant  Church  can  become  a  member  of 
this  church,  by  conforming  to  its  constitution  and  rules. 
All  confirmed  members  of  the  Lutheran  Church  can  become 
members  of  this  congregation,  by  a  letter  of  honorable  dis- 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


43 


mission  from  the  congregation  to  which  they  belonged  at  the 
time. 

Sec.  2.  Each  member  is  in  duty  bound  to  contribute, 
according  to  his  utmost  ability,  to  the  continued  existence 
of  the  congregation  ;  the  minimum,  or  least  amount,  shall 
be  for  males  $1.50  yearly,  and  $1.00  yearly  for  females,  and 
25  cents  per  hundred  on  personal  property  and  real  estate. 

Sec.  3.  All  members  in  good  standing,  who  contribute 
to  the  support  of  the  congregation,  shall  have  the  privilege 
of  voting,  but  only  male  members  are  eligible  to  office  in  the 
congregation. 

Sec.  4.  Whoever  voluntarily  disconnects  himself  from 
this  church,  to  become  a  member  of  another  congregation, 
or  should  he  be  expelled  by  the  Church  Council  on  account 
of  immoral  conduct,  forfeits  all  his  rights  of  membership. 

ARTICLE  IV. 

OF  THE   PROPERTY   OF  THE  CONGREGATION. 

Section  1.  We  regard  the  following  as  the  property  of 
the  congregation  :  The  church,  with  all  its  books  and  furni- 
ture ;  the  parsonage  and  other  immovable  and  movable  ar- 
ticles that  have  been  procured  in  the  name  of  the  congrega- 
tion ;  as,  also,  all  funds  in  the  hands  of  the  Treasurer,  and 
capital  invested  on  the  congregation's  account. 

Sec  2.  All  the  property  of  the  congregation  is,  and  re- 
mains forever,  indivisible. 

ARTICLE  V. 

OF  THE   MEETINGS    OF    THE    CONGREGATION    AND  CHURCH 

COUNCIL. 

Section  1.  The  congregational  meeting  takes  place  once 
every  year  in  the  month  of  August,  and  on  such  a  day  as 
shall  be  determined  by  the  President  ;  or,  in  case  of  absence 
or  refusal,  by  the  Vice-President.  Special  meetings  shall  be 
called  whenever  twenty-five  (25)  voting  members,  specify- 
ing the  object,  shall  request,  in  writing,  the  Church  Coun- 
cil so  to  do. 

Sec.  2.  All  congregational  meetings  must  be  announced 
publicly  in  the  church,  at  least  two  weeks  previous,  specify- 
ing the  object  for  which  they  shall  be  held. 

Sec.  3.  The  congregation  receives  the  annual  report  of 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


the  Treasurer,  and  appoints  a  committee  out  of  its  member- 
ship to  examine  the  same. 

Sec  4.  The  Church  Council  shall  assemble  itself  on  the 
first  Monday  in  January  of  each  year.  All  special  meetings 
subject  to  the  call  of  the  President  of  the  Council. 

Sec.  5.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Church  Council  to  fix 
the  salary  of  the  pastor  annually,  and  to  see  that  the  salary 
of  the  present  year  be  settled  with  the  pastor  before  enter- 
ing upon  the  duties  of  the  coming  year. 

ARTICLE  VI. 

OF   ELECTIONS   IN   GENERAL,   AND    PARTICULARLY   OF  THE 
ELECTION  AND  CALL  OF  A  PASTOR. 

Section  L  All  elections  shall  be  held  by  ballot. 

Sec.  2.  A  majority  of  the  votes  of  the  members  present, 
and  entitled  to  the  privilege  of  voting,  shall  be  necessary  to 
constitute  a  valid  election. 

Sec.  3.  At  an  election  for  a  pastor,  an  exception  shall  so 
far  be  made  in  the  above  regulation,  that  also  such  members 
who  are  unavoidably  absent  on  account  of  sickness,  shall 
have  the  right  to  send  in  their  votes  at  the  appointed  time, 
subscribed  "by  their  own  hand,  inclosed  in  a  sealed  envelope, 
and  directed  to  the  holders  of  the  election. 

Sec.  4.  The  pastor,  elected  as  above,  is  to  receive  a  writ- 
ten call  from  the  Secretary,  in  the  name  and  by  the  authority 
of  the  congregation,  and  is  in  duty  bound,  should  he  accept 
the  call,  to  signify  his  acceptance  of  it  in  writing. 

Sec.  5.  The  election  and  call  of  a  pastor  extend  to  an  in- 
definite period  of  time.  However,  if  the  pastor  wishes  to 
resign  his  office,  he  must  give  the  congregation  six  months' 
notice  through  the  Church  Council.  The  same  time  of  no- 
tice must  be  observed  by  the  congregation,  should  it  desire 
to  dismiss  its  pastor. 

Sec.  6.  All  congregational  elections  must  be  published 
by  the  Church  Council  to  the  congregation  at  least  two 
weeks  before  the  election.' 

Sec.  7.  At  elections  for  members  of  the  Church  Council, 
the  existing  council  shall  nominate  twice  as  many  persons  as 
are  to  be  elected,  and  the  congregation  may  nominate  half 
as  many  more,  from  whom  the  officers  may  be  chosen. 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


45 


ARTICLE  VII. 

WAYS  AND  MEANS  OF  RAISING  FUNDS. 

Section  1.  This  department  of  devising  ways  and  means 
for  raising  funds  shall  be  committed  to  the  Council. 

Sec.  2.  No  member  shall  be  excused  from  contributing 
to  the  support  of  the  church,  except  such  as  are  in  indigent 
circumstances,  of  which  the  Church  Council  shall  be  the 
judge. 

Sec.  3.  All  dues  to  the  Church  Treasury  shall  be  collected 
semi-annually  ;  hence,  arrangements  must  be  made  that  the 
Treasurer  shall  have  the  necessary  funds  in  hand  before  the 
salaries  are  due. 

ARTICLE  VIII. 

STANDING  COMMITTEES. 

Section  1.  At  the  regular  meeting  of  the  Church  Coun- 
cil, held  on  the  first  Monday  of  January  of  each  year,  the 
President  shall  appoint  the  following  committees,  who  are 
required  to  serve  for  one  year: 

Sec.  2.  Committee  on  Music,  consisting  of  three  members, 
who  are  to  see  to  it  that  the  organ  will  be  played  regularly, 
that  the  corps  of  choir  singers  will  be  kept  up,  and  shall 
suggest  to  the  Church  Council  such  purchases,  alterations, 
and  repairs  of  importance,  as  are  necessary  in  the  musical 
department. 

Sec.  3.  Committee  on  Relief,  consisting  of  the  Pastor 
and  two  Deacons,  to  whom  all  applications  of  indigent  cor.i- 
muning  members  for  aid  must  be  made,  whose  duty  it  shall 
be  to  make  provision  for  the  speedy  relief  of  our  worthy 
poor  members. 

Sec.  4.  All  cases  of  discipline  are  committed  into  the  hands 
of  Pastor  and  Elders  of  the  church;  and  it  is  left  optional  with 
them  to  determine  whether  it  is  prudent  to  make  their  de- 
cision publicly  known  or  not. 

Sec.  5.  The  office  of  Sexton  shall  be  let  out  to  the  low- 
est bidder,  at  the  regular  congregational  meeting  in  August 
of  each  year. 

Sec.  6.  The  Deacons  shall  also  report  semi-annually,  and 
shall  bring  to  the  notice  of  the  Church  Council  any  delin- 
quency on  the  part  of  the  members  in  the  payment  of  their 
dues. 

Sec.  7.  All  the  transactions  of  these  various  committees 


46 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


must  be  reported  at  the  next  regular  meeting  of  the  Church 
Council,  and  be  subject  to  the  ratification  or  rejection  of  the 
same. 

ARTICLE  IX. 

ORDER  OF  BUSINESS  FOR  THE  CHURCH  COUNCIL. 

Section  1.  The  meeting  shall  be  opened  with  prayer. 
Sec.  2.  The  Secretary  shall  call  the  roll,  and  note  the 
absentees. 

Sec.  3.  The  minutes  of  the  previous  meeting  shall  then 
be  read,  and,  if  found  correct,  adopted. 

Sec.  4.  The  Secretary  shall  read  the  name  of  such  mem- 
bers as  have  been  added  to  and  taken  from  the  church  since 
the  last  meeting. 

Sec.  5.  The  various  Standing  Committeees,  in  order, 
shall  be  called  upon  to  report,  and  their  reports  be  acted 
upon. 

Sec.  6.  All  letters,  documents,  petitions,  etc.,  intended 
for  the  Council  shall  then  be  read  and  acted  upon. 

Sec.  7.  Other  business  unfinished  at  the  last  meeting 
shall  now  be  taken  up  and  transacted.  1 

Sec.  8.  Resolutions,  if  any,  may  then  be  offered  for 
adoption. 

Sec.  9.  Suggestions  of  committees  or  of  members  may  be 
proposed  as  items  of  business. 

Sec.  10.  The  members  of  the  Council  may,  at  the  close 
of  their  business,  converse  on  the  welfare  and  prosperity  of 
the  church. 

Sec.  11.  At  all  called  or  special  meetings  of  the  Council 
the  use  of  this  order  of  business  may  be  omitted,  and  only 
such  business  be  transacted  as  that  for  which  the  special 
meeting  was  calkd. 

CONCLUSION. 

Section  1.  The  pastor,  as  well  as  all  members  of  the 
congregation,  pledge  themselves  conscientiously  to  observe 
and  sustain  all  the  articles  of  this  Constitution. 

Sec.  2.  The  congregation  reserves  the  right,  at  any  of  its 
meetings,  to  add  By-Laws  to  this  Constitution,  or  to  make 
amendments  to  the  same,  whenever  two-thirds  of  the  voting 
members  present  shall  declare  themselves  in  favor  of  such 
additions  or  amendments. 

Sec.  3.  Neither  shall  there  ever  be  any  rules  or  by-laws 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


47 


adopted  which  shall  not  be  in  strict  harmony  and  conformity 
with  the  symbolical  books  of  our  Evangelical  Lutheran 
Church,  as  enumerated  and  declared  at  this  time  in  the  doc- 
trinal basis  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Synod  and  Min- 
isterium  of  North  Carolina. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

M.  A.  LUDWICK, 
C.  D.  BARRINGER, 
GEO.  H.  CLINE, 
R.  W.  PETREA, 

Committee. 

For  several  years  after  this  the  congregation  made  steady 
progress.  The  church  was  developed  in  many  ways,  and 
Pastor  Petrea  did  his  work  faithfully.  However,  in  the 
year  1887  he  resigned,  but  remained  until  the  congregation 
had  secured  another  pastor.  The  new  pastor  was  present 
when  Pastor  Petrea  preached  bis  last  sermon,  and  a  large 
congregation  was  present,  and  many  regrets  were  expressed 
at  the  pastor's  leaving.  It  was  a  sad  service  indeed,  and 
he  went  away  with  the  prayers  of  the  people.  He  had  been  at 
St.  John's  a  little  over  eleven  years.    He  is  now  in  Nebraska. 

Rev.  S.  L.  Keller,  just  out  of  the  Seminary,  became  pas- 
tor in  1887.  He  was  young  and  filled  with  a  zeal  to  do 
something  for  the  Master,  and  at  once  went  about  the  work 
of  the  church  in  earnest. 

Several  things  of  considerable  importance  occurred  during 
his  pastorate. 

LTp  to  this  time  the  congregation  had  services  only  on 
three  Sundays  in  the  month.  Several  times  an  effort  had 
been  made  to  have  the  pastor  give  his  whole  time  to  the  con- 
gregation, but  it  was  always  defeated.  Another  one  was 
now  made,  and  this  time  it  was  successful.  No  one  to-day 
doubts  but  this  was  a  very  wise  movement. 

While  the  congregation  had  always  contributed  liberally 
towards  all  benevolent  objects,  yet  there  was  no  regular 
offering  given  in  the  sanctuary  at  each  time.  This  was 
proposed  in  1887,  and  at  once  became  a  part  of  the  regular 
Sunday  service. 


48 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


The  following  entry  appears  in  the  church  book  : 
"It  was  spoken  of  in  our  Council,  and  at  length  carried 
to  Conference,  and  then  decided'  that  no  certificate  should 
be  given  to  members  dismissing  them  from  the  Evangelical 
Lutheran  church  to  that  of  any  other  denomination.  This 
resolution  was  carried  o?tf." 

At  this  time,  1888,  the  Common  Service  was  introduced 
in  the  congregation.  There  was  a  great  deal  of  opposition 
to  its  use  by  a  large  part  of  the  members,  and  it  became  the 
source  of  strong  contention.  It  was  used  in  its  entirety  in 
spite  of  all  opposition.  There  is  a  goodly  number  here  now 
who  oppose  it,  and  as  a  result  it  has  only  been  used  in  part 
since  1890. 

In  1888  it  was  decided  to  remodel  the  church  building. 
The  entire  interior  part  was  re-arranged,  and  in  fact  it  was 
made  to  be  a  modern  church  in  every  respect.  The  gallery 
was  entirely  removed  and  the  pulpit  was  placed  in  the  east 
end  instead  of  the  west,  and  the  doors  on  the  sides  were 
closed,  one  large  door  of  entry  being  made  in  the  west  end. 
A  partition  in  each  end  made  it  possible  to  have  a  vestibule, 
a  library  room,  a  Sunday  School  room  for  the  infant  depart- 
ment, and  cloak  room,  etc. 

The  furniture  is  of  the  best,  and  is  the  handiwork  of  Mr. 
Matthew  Petrea,  who  in  his  day  was  one  of  the  best  cabinet 
makers  in  this  part  of  the  State.  It  is  made  of  walnut,  and 
besides  that  which  is  stationary  there  are  tables,  a  reading 
desk  and  a  baptismal  font. 

A  good  organ,  chairs,  etc,  complete  the  furnishing  of  the 
house. 

More  than  8500  was  expended  before  the  house  was  ready 
for  re-dedication,  which  joyous  event  occurred  on  the  10th 
day  of  February,  1889.  A  large  crowd  was  present,  and  the 
sermon  was  preached  by  Pastor  Keller  from  Iiab.  2  :  19,  20. 

In  the  year  1889  the  North  Carolina  Synod  met  at  St. 
Johns,  on  the  3rd  day  of  May.  This  was  a  notable  meeting 
of  the  Synod,  as  action  was  had  on  two  very  important  mat- 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


40 


ters.  One  of  these  was  the  organization  of  the  "Alpha 
Colored  Lutheran  Synod  of  North  Carolina/' 

This  organization  was  effected  in  the  Sunday  School  Li- 
brary Room,  and  it  probably  would  have  resulted  in  much 
good  but  for  the  untimely  death  of  one  of  the  leading  min- 
isters in  the  new  movement. 

But  the  one  that  had  the  most  direct  bearing  on  the  con- 
gregation was  the  resolutions  of  instruction  to  the  delegates 
to  the  United  Synod,  which  met  in  Wilmington,  N.  C,  in 
November  of  that  year.  There  were  those  in  the  North 
Carolina  Synod  at  that  time  who  could  not  agree  on  what  is 
commonly  known  as  the  "Four  Points." 

The  matter  was  discussed  in  the  presence  of  the  congre- 
gation, both  pro  and  con,  and  it  was  a  revelation  to  most  of 
the  laity. 

The  instructions  were  given  to  the  delegates,  and  the 
Synod  adjourned,  but  there  were  some  points  of  difference  yet 
to  be  reconciled  in  the  congregation.  An  effort  had  already 
been  made  to  introduce  the  pastoral  robe,  but  it  was  de- 
feated by  a  very  decided  voice  of  the  people. 

In  the  course  of  a  short  time  the  congregation,  with  a 
very  few  exceptions,  had  come  to  the  publicly  declared  posi- 
tion of  the  North  Carolina  Synod. 

But  there  was  not  that  unanimity  of  feeling  that  had  once 
existed,  and  as  some  were  not  entirely  satisfied  with  the 
management  of  affairs  while  the  church  was  rebuilding,  the 
pastor  offered  his  resignation  at  the  end  of  two  years.  It 
was  accepted  and  he  removed  to  South  Carolina. 

The  congregation  was  in  a  very  prosperous  condition  and 
many  methods  had  been  introduced  during  the  past  two 
years  which  proved  to  be  of  lasting  benefit. 

Pastor  Keller,  during  his  administration  here  was  happily 
married  to  Miss  Lizzie  Miller,  who  was  a  member  of  the  con- 
gregation and  had  been  reared  here.  He  was  pastor  a  little 
over  two  years. 

In  October,  1890,  a  call  was  extended  to  Rev.  Peter  Mil- 


50 


History  of  St.  Johx's  Church. 


ler,  of  Wardensville,  West  Virginia.  He  accepted  the  call, 
and  at  once  began  the  work  of  the  pastorate.  He  was  a  man 
of  decided  convictions  and  did  a  good  work  at  St.  John's. 
For  the  great  part  of  the  time  he  had  the  care  of  a  sick  wife, 
but  the  Lord  called  her  home  while  here,  and  he  after  that 
labored  under  the  burden  of  grief  also.  A  little  grand- 
child also  fell  alseep  in  Jesus,  and  in  all  of  these  things  the 
pastor  had  the  prayers  and  sympathies  of  his  people. 

The  first  matter  that  claimed  the  attention  of  the  Council 
at  this  time  was  that  of  the  finances  of  the  church. 

As  regards  the  finances,  the  present  prosperous  condition 
of  the  same  is  a  result  of  the  action  taken  at  this  time.  It 
was  very  simple — only  the  enforcement  of  the  previous  legis- 
lation on  the  subject.  At  first  there  was  a  good  deal  of  op- 
position but  it  has  lessened  each  year  until  it  has  well  nigh 
spent  itself.  The  assessment  plan  at  this  time  brings  in 
ample  funds  for  the  salary,  etc.,  and  is  no  longer  an  issue 
in  the  church. 

At  this  time  the  congregation  settled  another  question 
which  had  been  before  the  church  for  a  long  time.  This 
was  in  regard  to  the  rotation  of  the  officers  of  the  church, 
including  the  Trustees.  It  was  decided  to  declare  all  of  the 
offices  vacant,  and  then  the  congregation  proceeded  to  elect 
as  follows  :  An  Elder  and  a  Deacon  for  one  year,  and  also 
one  of  each  for  two,  three  and  four  years.  This  leaves  an 
Elder  and  a  Deacon  to  be  elected  each  year.  The  same  plan 
was  put  into  operation  with  reference  to  the  three  Trustees. 
At  first  it  was  opposed  by  quite  a  number  of  the  members, 
but  the  wisdom  of  the  plan  has  long  since  been  demonstrated, 
and  the  people  all  feel  now  that  it  has  settled  a  question 
which  had  vexed  the  church  for  many  years.  From  this 
time  dates  the  real  progress  of  the  congregation,  but  it  took 
some  time  for  the  people  to  become  reconciled  to  the  new 
order  of  things. 

About  this  time  there  was  some  opposition  manifested  to- 
wards the  pastor  from  another  source,  and  this,  along  with 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


51 


those  who  did  not  like  the  new  methods  introduced  by  Pastor 
Miller,  and  also  some  who  had  become  dissatisfied  before  he 
came,  seemed  to  make  a  considerable  party  of  opposition, 
and  the  pastor  decided  to  resign.  This  course  was  opposed 
by  the  Council,  but  the  resignation  was  presented  and  ac- 
cepted at  the  end  of  the  third  year. 

Much  of  the  work  of  Pastor- Miller  was  such  as  will  tell 
for  good  in  the  congregation.  He  was  a  devoted  man,  who 
did  acceptable  work  for  the  congregation,  and  all  were  real 
sorry  when  he  left.    He  went  back  to  West  Virginia. 

A  call  was  now  extended  to  Rev.  J.  Q.  Wertz,  who  was 
preaching  at  Union  church,  in  Rowan  County.  He  accepted 
and  entered  upon  his  duties  in  January,  1891. 

Pastor  Wertz  was  soon  in  the  midst  of  his  work,  and  it 
was  not  long  before  he  was  very  popular  among  the  people. 
His  pastorate  was  of  short  duration,  however,  as  he  resigned 
in  March,  1896,  in  order  to  accept  a  call  to  China  Grove, 
X.  C.  The  people  were  very  sorry  indeed  to  see  him  go, 
as  his  resignation  had  been  quite  a  surprise  to  the  people. 

During  the  two  years  of  his  pastorate  nothing  of  any  spe- 
cial importance  occurred  in  the  congregation.  The  church 
was  seemingly  prosperous,  and  many  who  had  uot  attended 
service  at  the  church  for  quite  a  while  now  became  regular 
attendants,  and  the  Word  was  preached  to  large  congrega- 
tion each  Sunday. 

In  the  autumn  of  1895  the  congregation  at  the  suggestion 
of  Pastor  Wertz  erected  a  nice  little  building  in.  the  yard  at 
the  parsonage  to  be  used  as  a  study  for  the  pastor. 

Pastor  Wertz  held  each  year  a  week's  continuous  service 
in  the  month  of  August.  This  was  a  very  wise  step,  and 
has  proved  of  great  benefit  to  the  church.  It  has  become  a 
fixture  of  the  church,  and  the  credit  for  the  conception  of 
the  plan  belongs  to  Pastor  Wertz. 

In  May,  189G,  a  call  was  extended  to  the  present  pastor, 
the  writer,  who  was  at  that  time  pastor  of  a  mission  at  Blue 
Ridge  Springs,  Virginia.    The  call  was  accepted  and  he  has 


52 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


been  laboring  here  since  that  time,  and  with  what  success  it 
is  best  to  let  others  testify.  It  does  not  become  me  to  speak 
of  my  labors  in  this  congregation,  as  all  realize  that  man  at 
best  is  but  a  weak  vessel  in  the  hands  of  God  for  the  accom- 
plishment of  good,  to  whom  belongs  all  the  honor  and 
pra'se.  Whatever  good  has  been  done  or  whatever  mistakes 
have  been  made  are  so  fresh  in  the  minds  of  the  people  that 
they  need  not  be  repeated  here. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


SUNDAY  SCHOOL,  PRAYER  MEETING,  AND  OTHER 
SOCIETIES  OP  THE  CHURCH. 

T.  JOHX'S  lias  always  had  all  of  the  different  auxiliary 
societies  which  are  usually  to  be  found  in  a  progressive 
congregation.  Some  experiments  have  been  made  in  this  line 
which  have  proved  to  be  only  failures,  but  mention  of  these 
unimportant  things  need  not  be  made  here. 

THE  SUNDAY  SCHOOL. 

It  is  impossible  to  know,  at  this  late  day,  the  exact  date 
of  the  organization  of  the  first  Sunday  School  in  this  con- 
gregation. It  is  safe  to  say  that  it  was  very  early  in  the 
history  of  the  congregation,  and  it  is  very  strange  that  no 
record  was  made  of  this  important  event.  The  Sunday 
School  was  in  successful  operation  in  1832,  and  how,  when, 
and  under  what  particular  circumstances  it  was  organized 
will  never  be  known,  as  this  knowledge  passed  from  earth 
with  those  who  did  the  work. 

At  first  there  were  several  Sunday  Schools  in  the  congre- 
gation, one  at  the  church,  and  a  number  scattered  through- 
out the  bounds  of  the  congregation.  In  fact  this  was  still 
the  case  in  1849,  and  some  of  these  schools  were  the  foun- 
dation of  some  of  the  congregations  which  have  gone  out 
from  St.  John's. 

The  Sunday  School  at  first  differed  but  little  from  the 
day  school,  except  some  of  the  older  pupils  read  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  an  effort  was  made  to  explain  the  different  pas- 
sages as  they  were  read,  while,  of  course,  there  were  prayers, 


54 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


singing,  etc.  Some  of  the  children  were  tan ght  their  letters 
and  others  carried  a  spelling  book,  and  many  learned  to 
read  in  this  way  who  had  no  other  opportunity  of  doing  it. 
But  it  was  a  beginning  in  the  right  direction,  and  God 
blessed  the  efforts  which  were  made  for  the  salvation  of  the 
young,  and  as  the  years  went  by  new  methods  were  intro- 
duced, and  reforms  brought  about  until  we  have  the  splen- 
did organization  of  to-day. 

It  is  impossible  to  give  a  detailed  history  of  the  Sunday 
School  through  all  of  its  existence,  as  the  records  are  lost, 
but  let  it  suffice  to  say  that  from  its  organization  up  to  1860 
the  work  was  pressed  with  more  or  less  energy  and  vigor,  in 
the  summer  season  at  least,  for  at  that  time  no  one  ever 
thought  of  having  Sunday  School  in  the  winter. 

During  the  war  between  the  States  the  whole  work  of  the 
church  was  demoralized,  and  the  Sunday  School  was  discon- 
tinued for  a  number  of  years.  Even  after  the  close  of  the 
war,  when  everything  was  yet  unsettled,  and  the  spiritual 
life  of  the  church  was  still  at  a  low  ebb,  no  attempt  was 
made  to  reopen  the  school  for  several  years. 

In  1867  Pastor  Groseclose  organized  it,  and  it  has  steadily 
gone  forward  since  that  time.  Instead  of  holding  its  ses- 
sions only  in  summer  time,  as  had  been  the  custom  for  a 
time,  the  school  now  meets  each  Lord's  day  in  the  year.  In 
it  the  children  are  taught  to  know  and  to  love  the  Savior, 
and  the  spirit  of  benevolence  is  being  cultivated  among 
them,  and  a  contribution  is  made  by  nearly  every  membjr 
each  Sunday  for  this  purpose.  All  modern  appliances  are 
used,  and  the  school  numbers  among  its  pupils  all  of  the 
children  and  young  people  of  the  church,  and  many  of 
the  older  people,  some  of  the  latter  being  among  those 
who  are  interested  in  the  study  of  the  Word,  and  the  most 
prompt  in  attendance. 

The  School  possesses  a  very  good  .Library.  There  are 
several  hundred  volumes  in  it,  and  while  some  of  the  books 
are  old,  quite  a  number  are  new,  and  altogether  they  make 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


55 


a  very  interesting  collection.  Recently  quite  a  number  of 
volumes  have  been  added  to  it.  The  present  enrollment  is 
277,  and  the  School  was  probably  never  more  prosperous 
than  at  this  time. 

THE  PRAYER  MEETING. 

The  Prayer-Meeting  is  older  than  the  congregation  as  an 
organization,  and  was  in  successful  operation  several  years 
before  the  first  house  of  worship  was  built,  for  before  they 
had  a  regular  house  of  worship  they  would  meet  in  some 
private  house,  and  have  a  prayer  and  song  service,  and  then 
when  the  house  was  built,  and  no  pastor  could  be  had,  they 
gathered  regularly  at  the  church  and  were  edified  by  a 
prayer  service.  At  such  times  a  sermon  would  sometimes 
be  read  by  the  school-teacher,  or  by  one  of  the  old  men  in 
the  church.  And  when  at  length  they  secured  a  pastor, 
the  prayer  service  was  held  during  the  30  minutes  preced- 
ing the  preaching  hour. 

With  or  without  a  pastor,  in  summer  and  in  winter,  these 
services  were  never  disturbed  until  the  opening  of  the  civil 
war.  Like  the  Sunday  School,  it  went  down  under  the  force 
of  the  shock  of  that  terrible  war,  and  for  quite  a  number  of 
years  no  prayer  meetings  were  held  at  St.  John's,  and  like 
the  Sunday  School  too,  it  was  reorganized  in  1867. 

The  Council,  in  this  year,  passed  the  following  resolu- 
tion :  "That  the  30  minutes  preceding  the  preaching  service 
be  devoted  to  prayer."  Since  then  it  has  continued  to  the 
present,  under  different  names  perhaps,  but  always  the  same 
in  objects  sought  to  be  achieved.  St.  John's  has  always 
been  a  church  of  prayer,  and  now  there  are  many  signs  that 
are  encouraging  to  those  who  desire  to  see  the  young  and 
old  mingle  their  voices  together,  and  raise  their  prayers  to 
a  throne  of  mercy  in  behalf  of  saint  and  sinner. 

For  more  than  130  years  devout  worshippers  have  render- 
ed their  praises  to  God  here  in  the  prayer  meeting.  May 
this  spirit  never  die ! 


56 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


THE  WOMAN'S  HOME  AND  FOREIGN  MISSIONARY 
SOCIETY. 

St.  John's  Church  has  always  fostered  and  encouraged 
the  spirit  of  Missions.  Itself  a  mission  of  the  church  in 
Germany,  and  during  this  time  having  learned  how  blessed 
it  is  to  receive,  being  often  destitute  of  the  means  of  grace 
herself,  she  has  learned  to  appreciate  these  blessings,  and 
she  has  now  for  more  than  a  hundred  years  shown  her 
appreciation  of  these  things  by  extending  these  blessings  to 
others  less  fortunate  than  herself.  No  church  has  ever  gone 
out  from  her  but  that  she  has  helped  them  to  secure  a  house 
of  worship,  and  many  others  have  been  the  recipients  of 
her  bounty.  Besides  this  she  has  always  contributed  her  full 
share  towards  defraying  the  expenses  of  our  missions,  both 
Home  and  Foreign,  and  has  helped  to  fill  the  requirements 
of  benevolence  in  the  Synod  to  which  she  belongs. 

In  the  year  1885  the  women  of  the  congregation  were 
organized  for  the  purpose  of  promoting  missions  and  the 
spirit  of  missions  among  the  people. 

The  organization  was  effected  in  April  1885,  and  Mrs. 
R.  W.  Petrea  became  the  first  President.  It  has  prospered 
as  much  as  could  have  been  expected  by  its  most  sanguine 
friends.  It  has  raised  from  $50  to  $100  each  year,  and  is 
as  prosperous  to-day  as  it  has  ever  been.  The  present 
membership  is  48,  and  the  performance  of  their  duty  seems 
to  be  a  pleasure  to  the  members.  The  society  receives  the 
direct  contributions  of  many  members  of  the  church,  and  is 
the  embodiment  of  the  spirit  of  missions  in  the  congre- 
gation. 

THE  LUTHER  LEAGUE. 

This  is  a  society  for  the  special  benefit  of  the  younger 
members  of  the  church.  Benevolence  is  encouraged,  the 
members  are  exercised  in  the  performance  of  the  public 
duties  of  church  members,  and  the  Word  is  studied  with 
care,  and  in  a  sytematic  way.  The  League  was  organized 
in  February,  1895,  and  the  pastor.  Rev.  J.   Q.  TA'ertz.wus 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


57 


elected  as  the  first  President.  It  started  out  with  75  mem- 
bers which  is  about  the  number  to-day. 

While  these  organizations  have  been  fostered  and  en- 
couraged, still  they  are  not  allowed  to  take  the  place  of  the 
church.  They  may  be  "auxiliaries"  indeed,  as  their  name 
implies,  but  the  word  of  God  is,  and  has  always  been, 
recognized  alone  as  "the  power  of  God  unto  salvation." 

The  League  has  been  of  considerable  benefit  to  the  con- 
gregation, and  it  has  become  one  of  the  arms  of  strength 
and.  assistance  of  the  church  in  promoting  the  Redeemer's 
Kingdom. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


THE  GRAVEYARD. 

HEN  the  congregation  built  their  house  of  worship 
on  the  banks  of  Buffalo  Creek,  they  set  apart  a  plot 
of  ground  for  a  graveyard.  The  land  here  was  very  well 
suited  for  the  purpose,  and  the  ground  on  every  side  of  the 
church  was  occupied,  leaving  the  church  in  the  middle,  as 
was  the  custom  in  that  day.  There  are  quite  a  number  of 
graves  here,  as  this  house  was  used  by  both  the  Lutherans 
and  German  Reforms  for  a  considerable  time.  Here  sleep 
many  of  the  early  settlers,  and  the  spot  is  made  sacred  by 
the  association  of  much  that  pertains  to  the  early  history  of 
this  section. 

There  is  a  monument  standing  on  the  site  of  the  old 
church,  in  the  midst  of  the  burying  ground.  It  is  the  gift 
of  the  people  whose  ancestors  worshiped  here  many  years 
ago,  and  who  iioav  lie  buried  at  this  place.  It  is  a  square 
marble  shaft,  about  ten  feet  high,  and  is  lettered  on  three 
sides  as  follows  : 

South  side :  "  Sacred  to  the  memory  of  those  members  of 
the  Lutheran  and  German  Reform  churches,  who  were 
buried  here  prior  to  1750." 

North  side  :  "This  land  was  donated  by  Edmond  Foil,  a 
member  of  the  German  Reform  church,  to  St.  John's,  Holy 
Trinity,  and  Mt.  Olive  E.  L.  churches,  and  Bethel  German 
Reform  church." 

West  side:  "Erected  November,  1894." 

The  labor  involved  in  building  this  monument  was  per- 
formed by  Pastor  Wertz. 


History  of  St.  Johx's  Church. 


59 


For  some  unknown  reason  they  decided,  after  some  years, 
on  a  new  location  for  their  church  ;  and  it  was  then  moved 
to  the  second  location,  about  one-half  mile  east  of  the  pres- 
ent church,  and  the  dead  were  buried  there  as  long  as  the 
congregation  worshipped  in  this  house.  This  was  only  a 
few  years,  and  consequently  there  were  but  few  graves  here. 
But  I  have  no  doubt  that  there  were  some.  This  was  in- 
tended to  be  the  permanent  location  of  the  church,  and  it 
was  the  custom  to  bury  at  the  church,  and  it  is  almost  cer- 
tain that  death  claimed  some,  even  if  the  time  was  short. 
At  present  there  are  no  marks  of  any  graves,  as  the  land  is 
all  under  cultivation,  but  the  oldest  people  here  all  agree 
that  the  site  has  been  called  "the  old  graveyard "  as  far 
back  as  they  can  remember. 

The  entire  history  of  the  graveyard  at  this  place  has  been 
lost  to  man,  and  who,  and  how  many,  sleep  here  will  never 
be  known  until  God  shall  wake  up  the  sleeping  dead  every- 
where. 

In  1771  the  church  was  removed  to  within  a  very  short 
distance  of  where  it  now  stands,  and  again  the  dead  were 
buried  near  the  church. 

The  land  is  very  well  suited  for  the  purpose  here.  It  is 
somewhat  elevated,  and  there  is  a  gradual  slope  toward  the 
east.  With  the  exception  of  one  small  corner,  the  clay  is 
nice  and  smooth,  and  is  free  from  rocks  and  even  gravel. 

At  first  the  dead  were  buried  without  any  special  order, 
except  that  an  effort  was  made  to  keep  families  together, 
and  all  were  placed  as  near  the  church  as  possible.  At 
length  a  certain  piece  of  ground  was  set  aside  as  the  grave- 
yard proper,  and  was  enclosed  by  a  wooden  fence. 

This  first  burying  ground  was  just  east  of  the  church,  and 
in  the  course  of  years  it  was  seen  that  it  would  be  necessary 
to  enlarge  it,  as  it  was  nearly  full  of  graves.  It  was  ex- 
tended towards  the  west,  which  left  the  church  near  the 
middle,  as  this  new  extension  was  somewhat  larger  than  the 
original  part.    The  new  part  was  enclosed  with  a  stone  wall 


60 


History  of  St.  Johx's  Church. 


along  with  the  other  part  in  1847.  At  first  it  was  decided 
to  extend  the  graveyard  west  of  the  church,  and  three  graves 
were  made  at  the  northwest  corner  of  the  church.  After- 
ward, when  it  was  decided  to  make  the  extension  just  west 
of  the  original  part,  these  bodies  were  removed  just  inside 
the  gate  of  the  old  graveyard.  They  were  daughters  of  Mr. 
Paul  Bost,  and  died  from  fever,  all  near  each  other  in  1847. 

An  effort  was  made  to  observe  some  order*  in  this  part, 
but  it  was  not  long  before  bodies  were  buried  in  the  drive- 
ways, and  soon  only  one  of  these  driveways  remained  open, 
extending  from  west  to  east  in  the  middle  of  the  upper  half. 

These  stones  were  gathered  from  the  surrounding  coun- 
try by  the  members  of  the  church.  This  part  contains 
acres,  and  the  wall  is  so  built  that  it  took  four  horses  to 
haul  enough  at  one  time  to  build  two  feet  of  the  fence.  This 
was  a  considerable  undertaking,  and  shows  that  the  people 
spared  no  pains  or  labor  in  surrounding  their  graveyard 
with  a  fence  that  was  once  beautiful  and  lasting. 

The  large  black  stones,  covered  with  moss,  standing  as 
silent  sentinels  of  the  dead,  are  in  keeping  with  the  marks 
of  more  than  one  hundred  years,  which  alone  remain  to  tell 
the  passerby  that  this  one  lived  and  died. 

There  is  a  silent  voice  which  speaks  to  every  one  who 
walks  amid  these  stones.  Here  on  this  slab  is  carved  a 
broken  bud,  "  aged  2  years. "  Here  is  a  hand  holding  an 
open  Bible,  with  a  finger  pointing  upward — "Gone  Home," 
"aged  75  years,"  and  another  "aged  90  years,"  etc. 

For  more  than  a  century  the  hopes,  and  joys,  and  sorrows, 
of  this  community  have  been  carefully  placed  underneath 
these  clods,  and  the  place  has  been  made  sacred  to  the 
mourners  who  have  wept  for  the  dear  treasures,  held  here  in 
"in  God"s  acre"  until  they  shall  hear  His  voice  and 
"arise  and  shine  V9 

There  are  3505  graves,  by  actual  count,  that  can  be  seen, 
and,  no  doubt,  there  are  many  others  either  never  marked 
or  the  stones  having  fallen  down,  have  been  entirely  removed. 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


61 


What  an  army !  The  living  congregation  is  as  nothing 
compared  to  those  who  sleep  within  the  sacred  dust  of  St. 
John's  graveyard  ! 

There  are  no  fine  monuments  here.  The  best  one,  I  am 
told,  cost  $500,  while  the  majority  are  marble  slabs,  and  are 
made  to  endure,  and  are  not  put  up  merely  for  show.  Some 
of  the  oldest  are  of  blue  slate,  and  some  are  even  made  from 
the  heart  of  the  pine  tree,  and  covered  with  paint,  and  these 
have  withstood  the  summer's  heat  and  winter's  cold  of 
many  years. 

Many  of  the  oldest  inscriptions  are  in  German,  and  the 
words,  "Born  in  Germany,"  are  very  common. 

In  the  eastern  part  there  are  two  of  special  interest.  One 
of  these  is  that  of  Father  Nussmann.  The  original  stone 
has  been  taken  away  and  placed  within  the  church,  and  a 
new  marble  slab  has  taken  its  place  at  the  grave.  It  is 
fitting  that  he  should  rest  here,  as  his  life  work  was  done 
principally  among  this  people. 

Another  one,  near  this  one,  marks  the  grave  of  Rev.  Jacob 
W.  Barrier.  He  is  one  of  the  only  two  ministers  who  have 
ever  been  reared  in  St.  John's  church,  the  other  being  Rev. 
D.  M.  Blackwelder,  who  is  still  living  in  Pennsylvania.  He 
wase  ducated  at  North  Carolina  College,  and  died  at  Enoch- 
ville,  N.  C. 

The  following  is  the  inscription  on  the  stone  : 

"In  memory  of  Rev.  Jacob  W.  Barrier.  Died  July  20th, 
1867,  aged  26  years,  9  mos.  and  6  days. 

"Rev.  xiv :  13,  '  Blessed  are  the  dead  which  die  in  the 
Lord  from  henceworth  :  Yea,  saith  the  Spirit,  that  they 
may  rest  from  their  labors.'  " 

The  monument  is  above  the  average  height,  and  is  well 
kept  by  the  relatives  and  friends. 

Near  the  western  wall  stands  that  of  Rev.  W.  Artz,  with 
the  following  inscription  : 

"Rev.  William  Artz,  born  June  1st,  1804,  died  April 
19th,  1886,  aged  71  years,  10  mos.  and  18  days." 


C>2 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


"Text  :  I.  Peter  v.  ch.  and  4th  verse,  'And  when  the 
chief  Shepherd  shall  appear,  ye  shall  receive  a  crown  of 
glory  that  fadeth  not  away/  " 

"  Erected  August  6th,  1889,  by  the  Evan.  Lutheran  Synod 
of  N.  0." 

The  slab  also  contains  the  obituary  of  his  wife,  which  is 
as  follows  : 

"Sarah,  wife  of  Eev.  William  Artz.  Born  October  4th, 
1806.  Died  September  20th,  1867,  aged  60  years,  11  mos. 
and  16  days.    Text  :  II.  Cor.  v.  ch.  and  6th  verse." 

These  three  are  the  only  ministers  buried  here. 

In  the  year  1896  the  congregation  took  steps  to  enlarge 
the  graveyard  a  second  time.  A  committee  was  appointed 
to  lay  off  in  lots,  suitable  in  size  for  each  family,  all  of  the 
land  lying  between  the  wall  on  the  west  side  and  the  church, 
and  also  some  land  lying  between  the  wall  on  the  south  side 
and  the  road.  This  was  done,  and  in  January,  1897,  the 
congregation  met  and  removed  the  wall  from  the  west  end, 
and  placed  it  in  connection  with  the  upper  ends  of  the 
north  and  south  walls.  This  left  the  entire  west  end  open, 
and  in  the  spring  of  1898  the  congregation  placed  a  first-class 
iron  fence  at  this  end  at  a  cost  of  $150. 

There  are  now  15  graves  in  this  new  part,  which  contains 
seven-eighths  of  an  acre,  and  along  with  the  old  part  there 
is  enclosed  three  and  five-twenty-fourth  acres.  The  grounds 
are  very  well  kept.  Eecently  all  of  the  monuments  have 
been  secured  in  their  places. 

"  Blessed  are  the  dead  which  die  in  the  Lord." 


CHAPTER  IX. 


SUMMARY— CONCLUSION. 

ME  have  now  briefly  traced  the  history  of  the  congre- 
gation from  its  beginning  to  the  present  time.  A 
summary  of  the  most  important  events  may  be  of  some  in- 
terest to  the  reader  in  this  connection. 

The  first  German  settlement  was  made  in  eastern  Cabarrus, 
then  Mecklenburg  County,  in  the  year  1750.  These  peo- 
ple came  from  the  Province  of  Pennsylvania,  and  at  the 
close  of  the  Revolutionary  War  were  reinforced  by  a  goodly 
number  of  Hessian  soldiers  who  had  deserted  from  the  Brit- 
ish army.  These  found  homes  and  protection  among  their 
German  brethren  who  had  been  true  to  American  liberty 
from  the  beginning. 

Their  first  religious  services  were  held  in  private  houses, 
and  consisted  in  prayers,  songs,  etc. 

After  some  years  a  rude  house  was  built  of  pine  logs  on 
the  banks  of  Buffalo  Creek,  and  the  congregation  received 
the  name  of  "  Dutch  Buffalo  Creek  Meeting-House."  The 
house  was  also  used  as  a  school  house,  and  they  worshipped 
here  for  a  number  of  years,  and  here  the  first  graves  were 
made  in  this  section.  The  site  is  now  marked  by  a  marble 
shaft  erected  in  November,  1884. 

For  some  unknown  reason,  but  probably  because  of  the 
house  not  being  located  near  enough  the  centre  of  the  con- 
gregation, it  was  decided  to  remove  to  a  new  location.  A 
site  was  chosen  one-half  mile  east  of  the  present  house,  and 
here  the  second  house  was  erected.  This  house  was  also  built 
from  unhewn  pine  logs,  and  was  but  little  larger  and  in  no 


G4 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


wise  better  than  the  former.  Both  were  jointly  owned  by 
the  Lutherans  and  the  German  Reforms. 

Here  some  graves  were  made  also,  but  this  location  was 
not  satisfactory  to  a  part  of  the  members,  and  it  resulted 
in  a  serious  division  of  the  church. 

In  the  year  1771  Captain  John  Paul  Barringer  and  others 
advised  the  congregation  to  separate  themselves  from  their 
German  Reform  brethren,  and  to  build  a  house  of  their  own 
on  a  new  location,  and  also  to  build  a  school  house,  and 
most  important  of  all,  to  make  an  effort  to  get  a  regular 
pastor.  This  was  acted  upon,  and  a  site  was  chosen  in  the 
midst  of  the  present  graveyard,  and  a  school  house  was  built 
near  by. 

This  third  house  was  larger  and  better  than  any  which 
had  been  built  up  to  this  time,  and  was  built  chiefly  at 
Captain  Barringer's  expense.  An  elevated  pew  was  placed 
in  this  house  for  his  especial  benefit,  and  was  transferred  to 
the  new  house  in  1785. 

Previous  to  this  time  they  had  worshipped  without  an  or- 
dained minister.  The  school  teacher  would  read  a  sermon 
on  Sunday,  and  in  extreme  cases  would  baptize  their  children. 

As  no  minister  could  be  had  in  America,  it  was  decided 
to  send  to  Europe  for  a  pastor  and  school  teacher. 

Christopher  Layrle,  of  St.  John's,  and  Christopher  Rin- 
telman,  of  Organ,  Avere  sent  to  Germany  for  this  purpose. 
They  succeeded  in  getting  Rev.  Adolphus  Xussmann  as 
pastor,  and  Mr.  J.  G.  Arndt  as  school  teacher. 

Besides,  these  Commissioners  secured,  by  donation,  a  cer- 
tain sum  of  money,  which  was  all  finally  secured  in  1785, 
and  was  of  great  help  to  the  congregation  up  to  1846,  when 
the  last  of  the  fund — $1500 — was  used  in  the  building  of 
the  brick  church. 

Messrs.  Xussmann  and  Arndt  arrived  in  America  in  1773, 
and  both  located  at  Organ  Church. 

In  the  meantime  St.  John's  had  their  school  room  com- 
pleted, and  secured  a  Mr.  Friesland  as  teacher. 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


65 


At  the  end  of  one  year,  in  1774,  Rev.  Nussmann  came  to 
St.  John's  as  their  first  regular  pastor.  He  secured  a  farm 
by  a  grant  from  the  government,  and  lived  and  died  at  Sc. 
John's. 

The  dark  days  of  the  Revolutionary  War  were  now  being 
passed,  and  they  were  sorely  pressed  to  keep  up  even  the 
semblance  of  a  church  until  the  close  of  the  war.  The 
church  farm  had  been  secured,  and  it  was  now  certain  that 
this  would  be  the  permanent  location  of  the  church. 

In  1785  the  people  decided  "to  rebuild  St.  John's 
Church,"  and  a  new  frame  house  was  erected  on  the  same 
ground  which  the  old  one  had  occupied.  This  was  a  good 
building,  and  as  it  was  painted  red,  it  received  the  name  of 
the  "  Old  Red  Meeting  House." 

After  the  death  of  Pastor  Nussmann  in  1794,  Rev.  C.  A. 
G.  Storch  served  as  supply  pastor  for  one  year.  Then  Rev. 
Adam  N".  Marcard  was  pastor  for  three  years,  after  which 
Rev.  Storch  was  called  as  their  regular  pastor  and  continued 
to  serve  until  1821. 

In  the  years  1800  and  1801  revivals  were  introduced  in 
the  American  Lutheran  churches.  They  created  a  great  deal 
of  confusion,  and  our  people  did  not  become  quiet  again  for 
a  number  of  years  after  this. 

Pastor  Storch  resigned,  however,  in  1803  on  account  of 
ill  health,  and  Rev.  John  Henkel,  of  Virginia,  was  called. 
But  he  died  in  the  midst  of  his  preparations  for  removing 
to  St.  John's,  and  Rev.  Storch  was  called  again  to  take  up 
the  work. 

In  1821  Rev.  Daniel  Scherer  came  as  their  pastor,  and 
remained  until  1832,  when  he  removed  to  Illinois.  He  was 
succeeded  by  Rev.  Henry  Graeber,  who  remained  until  1842. 

In  1835  the  second  wave  of  "revivalism"  swept  over  the 
country.  This  was  the  beginning  of  tent  meetings,  arbor 
meetings,  etc. 

Rev.  John  D.  Scheck  was  called  in  1844,  and  remained 


66 


History  of  St.  Johx's  Church. 


until  1857.  The  new  brick  church  was  erected  b}T  him 
in  1846. 

Rev.  G.  D.  Bernheim  was  pastor  from  1858  to  1860. 

In  1859  the  first  parsonage  was  built  at  Mt.  Pleasant. 

Rev.  J.  13.  Anthony  was  pastor  from  1860  to  1867.  These 
were  the  darkest  days  of  the  church,  and  Pastor  Anthony 
was'the  instrument  in  God's  hands  of  doing  much  good 
during  these  dark  days  in  "strengthening  the  things  which 
remained  and  which  were  ready  to  die." 

Rev.  L.  C.  Groseclose  served  from  1867  to  1872,  and  was 
the  last  of  the  "revival  "  pastors. 

Rev.  D.  M.  Henkel  from  1872  to  some  time  in  1875,  and 
Rev.  R.  W.  Petrea  from  1876  to  1887. 

From  this  time  on  the  history  is  so  fresh  in  the  minds  of 
all  that  it  need  not  be  gone  over  again  in  detail.  But  let 
us  be  more  specific  in  this  summary. 

The  following  table  will  show  who  the  successive  pastors 
were,  and  the  time  of  service  of  each  : 

Rev.  Adolphus  Nussmann,  from  1774  to  1974,  20  years. 

Rev.  C.  A.  G.  Storch,  from  1796  to  1797,  1  year. 

Rev.  x\dam  N.  Mareard,  from  1797  to  1800,  3  years. 

Rev.  C.  A.  G.  Storch,  from  1800  to  1821,  21  years. 

Rev.  Daniel  Scherer,  from  1822  to  1831,  9}  years. 

Hev.  Henry  Graeber,  from  1832  to  1843,  1H  years. 

Rev.  John  D.  Scheck,  from  1844  to  1857,  13}  years. 

Rev.  G.  D.  Bernheim,  from  1858  to  1860,  2  years. 

Rev.  J.  B.  Anthony,  from  1860  to  1867,  7  years. 

Rev.  L.  C.  Groseclose,  from  1867  to  1872,  5  years. 

Rev.  D.  M.  Henkel,  from  1872  to  1875,  U  years. 

Rev.  R.  W.  Petrea,  from  1876  to  1887,  llf  years. 

Rev.  S.  L.  Keller,  from  1887  to  1890,  2^  years. 

Rev.  Peter  Miller,  from  1890  to  1893,  3  years. 

Rev.  J.  Q.  Wertz,  from  1894  to  1896,  2^  years. 

Rev.  S.  D.  SterTey,  from  1896  to  (March)  1899,  2|  years. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  above  table  that  from  the  time 
Rev.  Xussmann  assumed  charge  of  the  congregation  in  1774 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


67 


to  the  present — 125  years — the  congregation  has  had  15  dif- 
ferent pastors.  These  15  pastors  have  served  the  congrega- 
tions 119  years,  leaving  only  6  years  to  be  divided  between 
the  different  vacancies,  none  of  which  have  been  very  long, 
and  most  of  which  have  been  filled  by  supply  preaching. 

Rev.  Storch  has  the  distinction  of  serving  the  congrega- 
tion longest,  21  years,  as  a  regular  pastor,  and  one  year  as  a 
supply,  and  is  also  the  only  man  who  was  ever  called  a  sec- 
ond time,  he  having  been  called  three  times  in  all. 

The  list  of  successive  pastors  of  St.  John's  is  an  honored 
one,  and  one  can  only  feel  proud  to  be  numbered  among 
them. 

As  to  doctrine,  St.  John's  has  always  been  soundly  Lu- 
theran. She  required  her  first  pastors  to  "confess  by 
mouth  and  heart  to  the  symbolical  books  of  the  church," 
and  from  that  time  to  the  present  she  has  never  let  the  "fire 
die  in  the  altar"  of  biblical  Lutheranism.  From  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  congregation  until  the  year  1800  the  chil- 
dren were  catechised  according  to  the  methods  of  the  mother 
church  in  Germany.  Then  for  several  years  this  plan  was 
in  disfavor  with  the  people  at  large,  but  it  was  never  entirely 
abandoned.  By  the  year  1810  the  congregation  had  gotten 
back  again  to  the  old  paths,  and  there  was  no  further  dis- 
cussion of  the  subject  until  1835,  when  the  "new  methods" 
were  introduced  by  Rev,  Jenkins,  from  Maryland.  For 
twenty-five  years  both  of  these  methods  was  employed  by  the 
different  pastors. 

From  1860  to  1872  the  revival  method  was  used  exclu- 
sively, and  from  that  time  the  former  has  beeen  used  exclu- 
sively. But  at  no  time  has  the  church  been  far  from  the 
"good  old  way."  All  efforts  towards  either  extreme  have 
failed,  and  her  doctrinal  position  has  always  been  directly  in 
accord  with  the  Xorth  Carolina  Synod,  of  which  body  she 
has  been  a  member  since  its  organization  in  1803. 

In  the  early  days  the  territory  of  the  congregation  was 
very  large  indeed.    In  1771  many  people  traveled  twenty- 


(33 


History  of  St.  Johx's  Church. 


five  miles  to  church,  but  as  the  years  went  by,  the  country 
was  more  thickly  settled,  and  new  congregations  were  estab- 
lished :  this  territory  was  gradually  contracted  until  the 
present  bounds  were  reached.  But  strange  to  say  that  as 
her  territory  was  diminished,  and  as  new  congregations  were 
organized  directly  from  her  membership,  still  her  own 
strength  at  home  has  steadily  increased  until  to-day  her 
membership  is  greater  than  ever  before  and  her  influence 
more  extended. 

It  is  now  four  miles  to  the  eastern  limits  of  her  territory, 
three  and  one-half  to  the  western,  four  to  the  northern  and 
seven  to  the  southern.  Her  present  membership  is  300,  and 
there  is  a  steady  growth  along  all  lines  of  churchly  life. 

The  money  necessary  for  the  local  expenses  of  the  church, 
such  as  pastor's  salary,  etc.,  is  raised  by  what  is  known  as 
the  "  Assessment  Plan/'  Each  male  member  is  taxed  $1.50 
and  each  female  member  $1.00,  and  besides  this  they  are 
required  to  pay  25  cents  on  each  $100  worth  of  property  of 
which  they  are  possessed.  This  is  the  minimum  amount 
asked  for,  and  each  one  is  allowed  to  contribute  as  much  as 
they  desire.  The  plan  gives  satisfaction.  The  entire  ex- 
penses of  the  congregation  last  year  was  $1009. 

She  has  always  been  liberal  in  her  contributions  to  the 
Synod,  and  has  taken  care  of  her  own  sick  and  helpless  ones, 
and  has  also  contributed  toward  the  support  of  the  church 
at  other  places. 

The  following  churches  and  educational  institutions  have 
received  financial  aid  from  her  :  Bethel,  St.  Stephens,  Mt. 
Herman,  Holy  Trinity,  Mt.  Pleasant,  St.  Marks,  Charlotte; 
the  first  Lutheran  Church  of  Richmond,  Va. ;  Mt.  Olive, 
Prosperity,  Cold  Water,  Mission  at  Stauner,  Nebraska;  Im- 
manuel,  and  also  the  "  Theological  Seminary  of  the  South;" 
North  Carolina  College  and  Mt.  Amcena  Seminary. 

The  following  churches  have  been  organized  from  her 
membership  :   Bethel,  St.   Stephens,   Mt.   Hermon,  Holy 


History  of  St.  John's  Church. 


69 


Trinity,  Mt.  Olive,  Prosperity,  and  the  new  Cold  Water 
congregation. 

Also  an  effort  is  now  being  made  to  build  a  house  of 
worship  seven  miles  south  of  St.  John's,  in  which  it  is 
hoped  to  organize -a  congregation  in  the  near  future.  The 
house  is  well  under  way,  and  it  is  hoped  soon  to  organize 
the  eighth  congregation  from  the  material  of  old  St.  John's. 
And  this  is  not  all,  as  many  of  her  children  are  honored 
members  of  other  Lutheran  churches  in  this  and  also  in 
many  other  States.  Though  old  in  years,  she  is  not  en- 
feebled, and  her  "  strength  has  been  renewed  like  the 
eagle's."  God  has  been  in  the  midst  of  he4%  and  has  sig- 
nally blessed  her,  and  she  closes  this  century  with  brighter 
prospects  than  she  has  ever  had  before. 

May  this  brief  history  inspire  our  people  with  a  greater 
respect  for  their  dear  old  church,  and  may  they  transmit  to 
a  future  generation  an  heritage  as  glorious  as  that  which 
they  received  at  the  hands  of  their  fathers.  And  what  a 
heritage  it  is  !  May  we  all  be  inspired  by  it  to  greater 
things  for  God  and  His  church,  and  may  St.  John's  never 
be  weaker  than  she  is  to-day  ! 

"  A  glorious  church,  without  spot  or  wrinkle." 


Date  Due 


 ^  









Form  335.    45M  8-37. 


r      204    Z99    1860-99    v. 2 


N.C.  Religious  pamphlets 


DATE 


ISSUED  TO 


C.     204     Z99     1860-99     v. 2 

Nos.1-13  343074 


